Carnforth High School

What Carnforth High School does

Carnforth High School is a state-funded secondary academy located on Kellet Road in Carnforth, Lancashire, serving approximately 600–700 students aged 11–16 across Years 7–11. The school joined The Bay Learning Trust in June 2018, operating under Lancashire County Council's admissions framework as a free, government-funded institution. It delivers a broad National Curriculum at Key Stage 3 alongside GCSE, BTEC, Cambridge Nationals, and VTCT vocational qualifications at Key Stage 4, with annual Year 11 cohorts of 116–126 students and an Attainment 8 score in the high 30s to low 40s.

The school's core product is secondary education, augmented by an integrated digital ecosystem built primarily on Microsoft 365 with third-party SaaS layered on top: ClassCharts for behaviour, attendance and homework tracking; School Gateway for payments and parent communications; Fusion Online for meal pre-ordering; School Cloud for parent evening bookings; Unifrog for careers planning; Seneca Learning and Sparx Maths for subject-specific learning; and Microsoft Forms-based reporting for safeguarding concerns. Ancillary services include school meals, uniform retail through a dedicated school shop, subsidised instrumental music tuition, and educational trips, some funded by Pupil Premium and parental contributions.

Revenue is overwhelmingly derived from government per-pupil funding channelled through The Bay Learning Trust, with supplementary transactional income from meals, uniform, trips, and music lessons. Pricing for core education is free at the point of delivery; ancillary services operate on a pay-as-you-go or transaction basis. The school's customer base is geographically concentrated within the Carnforth catchment, with admissions handled via Lancashire County Council and in-year transfers accepted directly. Leadership comprises an Executive Headteacher, a Headteacher, an Acting Deputy Headteacher, and a wider senior team, with the school's small scale positioned as a pastoral and community differentiator.

Name

Carnforth High School

Legal name

Carnforth High School

Website

https://carnforthhigh.co.uk

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Carnforth High School is a state-funded secondary academy in Carnforth, Lancashire, serving approximately 600–700 pupils aged 11–16 across Years 7–11 within The Bay Learning Trust. It delivers free GCSE and vocational education supported by an integrated ed-tech stack.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Secondary Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (611110), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public High Schools (EDAJAAAD)

Keywords

• Secondary education services
• GCSE qualifications
• Pastoral support
• Careers guidance
• Personal development

Headquarters

HQ city

Carnforth

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Government Education Funding: State-funded secondary school receiving government funding through the Bay Learning Trust academy arrangement to provide free education to students.
2. School Meals: Revenue from students purchasing school dinners, managed through School Gateway system and Fusion Online pre-ordering.
3. Uniform Sales: School uniform sold through the school shop (carnforthhighuniform.com).
4. Subsidised Services: Subsidised instrumental music lessons and educational trips funded partially by pupil premium and parental contributions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Carnforth High School is a state-funded secondary academy providing full-time education for students aged 11-16 (Years 7-11) in Carnforth, Lancashire. The school delivers the National Curriculum at Key Stage 3 and a broad range of GCSE and vocational qualifications at Key Stage 4, along with pastoral support, careers guidance, personal development, and extra-curricular programmes. The educational offering is underpinned by an integrated digital ecosystem for student management, payments, communications, and learning.

Product overview

Carnforth High School operates as a secondary educational institution offering a comprehensive digital ecosystem for students, parents, and staff. The school provides a platform-plus-services model combining traditional educational delivery with integrated digital tools. Core educational programmes include a broad Key Stage 3 curriculum (Years 7-9) and specialised GCSE/vocational qualifications at Key Stage 4 (Years 10-11). The digital infrastructure is anchored by ClassCharts for student management, School Gateway for payments and communications, Fusion Online for catering, and Unifrog for careers guidance. Additional platforms including Seneca Learning, SparxMaths, and School Cloud support specific functions. The school also partners with the National School Breakfast Programme and offers extracurricular programmes including the Duke of Edinburgh's Award and extensive clubs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Secondary School Curriculum (Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4) Comprehensive secondary education programme for students aged 11-16 across Years 7-11, covering core subjects (English, Mathematics, Science), humanities (History, Geography), languages (Spanish), arts (Art, Drama, Music), technology, computing, PE, and Life Skills. Includes GCSE and vocational qualifications at Key Stage 4 via exam boards AQA, Edexcel, Eduqas, OCR, Pearson BTEC, VTCT, and WJEC.
• Careers Guidance Programme Comprehensive careers service using the Unifrog platform and external Career North advisors to provide every Year 11 student with personalised Action Plans, covering career research, apprenticeship exploration, CV building, interview skills, and work experience placement management.
• Life Skills Curriculum (PSHEE) Weekly timetabled Life Skills programme covering PSHEE, SMSC, Citizenship and RSHE for all students across Year groups.
• Duke of Edinburgh's Award Programme Extra-curricular award programme for students at Bronze and Silver levels, comprising volunteering, physical and skills sections, supported by practice and qualifying expeditions.
• National School Breakfast Programme Free daily breakfast service for all students, offered every school day from 08:00 to 08:55, providing cereals, bagels, toast and porridge as part of the National School Breakfast Programme.
• School Meals and Catering Service School meals service with pre-ordering via Fusion Online, allowing students to order meals in advance for quick collection at lunch, with payments managed through School Gateway.
• School Uniform Shop School-branded uniform available for purchase through the school's dedicated online shop, with Pupil Premium funding support available to eligible families.
• Subsidised Instrumental Music Lessons and Educational Trips Optional paid enrichment services including instrumental music lessons and educational trips, subsidised through pupil premium funding and parental contributions.
• SEND Support Service Statutory SEND support coordinated by the SENDCo and Assistant SENDCo, providing tailored educational support for students with special educational needs and disabilities.
• Anti-Bullying and Safeguarding Programme Zero-tolerance anti-bullying programme with proactive pastoral support, School Council drop-in sessions, and a confidential Reach Out reporting system for bullying behaviours and safety concerns.
• Initial Teacher Training (Ripley ITT) School-based Initial Teacher Training delivered through Ripley ITT (Outstanding Ofsted June 2023), offering core provider route, teacher apprenticeship, and assessment only pathway for primary and secondary teacher training.

Quantifiable outcome

• 56.7% of pupils achieved English and Maths at Grade 4 (2025)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

19 partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• The Bay Learning TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCarnforth High School joined The Bay Learning Trust in June 2018. The Trust operates as a multi-academy trust supporting schools in the Lancaster and Morecambe area. Contact: The Lodge, Ripley St Thomas Academy, Ashton Road, Lancaster, LA1 4RR. Tel: 01524 581872.
• National School Breakfast ProgrammesupportingOthersPartnership providing free breakfast for all students from 08:00-08:55 every school day, ensuring students have access to nutritious start to the day.
• Microsoft 365coreTechnology or IntegrationPrimary technology platform used by all students and staff for email, productivity tools, and single sign-on to other educational applications including Seneca and Sparx Maths.
• ClassChartscoreTechnology or IntegrationBehaviour, attendance, homework, rewards and extra-curricular activity tracking platform with automated notifications to parents.
• UnifrogcoreTechnology or IntegrationCareers planning platform used by all students and staff for researching careers, building CVs, exploring apprenticeships, and managing work experience placements.
• Seneca LearningsupportingTechnology or IntegrationLearning platform used by some subject departments for classwork and homework, accessed via Microsoft 365 login.
• Sparx MathssupportingTechnology or IntegrationMaths homework platform used by the Maths department, integrated with Microsoft 365 authentication.
• School GatewaycoreTechnology or IntegrationPayment platform for school meals, trips and resources, also used for email communications with parents.
• School Cloud (TES Parents' Meetings)supportingTechnology or IntegrationOnline appointment booking system for parents' evenings and other school events.
• Fusion OnlinesupportingTechnology or IntegrationMeal pre-ordering system allowing students to collect food quickly at lunch time, operated by CRB Cunningham.
• Ripley ITT (Initial Teacher Training)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerSchool hosts Initial Teacher Training through Ripley ITT, part of the Bay Learning Trust. Ripley ITT has been judged Outstanding by Ofsted (June 2023). Provides routes to train primary and secondary teachers including core provider route, teacher apprenticeship, and assessment only pathway.
• Career NorthsupportingChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorExternal careers advisors who visit school to provide students with careers advice, information and guidance. Priority placed on speaking to every Year 11 student in careers guidance meetings with personalised Action Plans shared via Unifrog.
• AQAsupportingTechnology or IntegrationExam board for GCSE qualifications in Art, Design Technology, Food Preparation and Nutrition, Geography, Computer Science, Drama, and Media Studies.
• Edexcel (Pearson)supportingTechnology or IntegrationExam board for GCSE qualifications in Mathematics, Modern Languages (French, Spanish), History, and Physical Education.
• EduqassupportingTechnology or IntegrationExam board for GCSE qualifications in English Language, English Literature, and Religious Studies.
• OCRsupportingTechnology or IntegrationExam board for Cambridge Nationals iMedia vocational qualification.
• Pearson BTECsupportingTechnology or IntegrationVocational exam board for BTEC qualifications in Enterprise, Health and Social Care, and Music Practice.
• VTCT (Vocational Training Charitable Trust)supportingTechnology or IntegrationExam board for Hairdressing vocational qualifications at Level 1/2.
• WJECsupportingTechnology or IntegrationExam board for GCSE Religious Studies qualification.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• Schudio: UK school-website and digital communications provider whose platform powers carnforthhigh.co.uk. Adjacent infrastructure vendor serving the same UK secondary school customer base on a recurring SaaS model.
• ClassCharts: UK EdTech vendor whose behaviour, attendance, homework and rewards platform is Carnforth's primary student-management system. Comparable as a B2B SaaS infrastructure provider to UK secondary schools, with overlapping customer base and revenue model.
• Unifrog: UK-based careers platform vendor used across all year groups at Carnforth for Gatsby-Benchmark delivery, apprenticeship tracking and work-experience management. Provides comparable careers-education infrastructure to a large base of UK secondaries on a subscription basis.

Regional players

• Lancaster Royal Grammar School: Historic selective independent secondary school in Lancaster competing for the same Lancashire pupil intake at age 11+ and beyond. Different funding model (independent fees) but directly comparable geography, parental-choice set and GCSE/vocational curriculum breadth.
• Lancaster Girls' Grammar School: Selective state grammar school in Lancaster serving a similar 11-18 age range. Comparable academically, draws from the same North West England feeder pool of primary schools and competes for the same Year 7 admissions window through Lancashire County Council.
• Our Lady's Catholic College: Catholic voluntary-aided secondary school in Lancaster offering 11-16 provision with a broad GCSE and vocational curriculum. Directly comparable to Carnforth in size, geographic catchment and the parental-choice competition for North West England secondary admissions.

Direct peers

• Ripley St Thomas Church of England Academy: Lancaster-based secondary academy and fellow member of The Bay Learning Trust. Operates the same multi-academy governance, central finance and shared-services model as Carnforth High School, serving a directly overlapping Lancaster and Morecambe catchment.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/carnforthhighschool
• Instagraminstagram.com/carnforthhighschool
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/carnforth-high-school

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Carnforth High School