Great Torrington School

Great Torrington School continues to maintain a good standard of education overall, demonstrating strong performance in many areas. Pupils express positivity about their school experience, valuing the broad curriculum that includes various enrichment activities and a robust sports program. The school is inclusive, with leaders setting high expectations for both pupils' academic and personal development. While the curriculum is ambitious and predominantly well-structured, there are some concerns about the effectiveness of feedback provided to students regarding their improvement, suggesting that there is room for development in this area.

Strengths

• Pupils are proud of the inclusive sports program and extra-curricular activities.
• Teachers are passionate about their subjects, motivating pupils effectively.
• Strong focus on personal, social and health education, allowing open discussions.
• Well-structured reading program helps all pupils improve their literacy.
• Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive effective support.
• Clear vision from leaders and governors to provide a wide range of experiences.

Areas for Improvement

• Some pupils do not fully understand how to act on feedback to improve their work.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Great Torrington School attended 87.5% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 33.1% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 16.0% of pupils at Great Torrington School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 3 pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Great Torrington School had 15.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 8.8% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 16.2% of pupils at Great Torrington School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.4% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 Great Torrington School received £7,879 and spent £7,834 for each of its 887 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £872,000 (£983 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Torridge · Devon local authority: places and applications

What is Great Torrington School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Great Torrington School is Good, from an inspection in September 2022.

When was Great Torrington School last inspected by Ofsted?

Great Torrington School was last inspected in September 2022.

How many pupils does Great Torrington School have?

Great Torrington School has 863 pupils on roll.

What age range does Great Torrington School cover?

Great Torrington School for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Great Torrington School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 42.1, and 41% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Great Torrington School?

Great Torrington School is at Calvesford Road, Torrington, Devon, EX38 7DJ.