Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School

Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School has been evaluated as good overall in its first inspection under the Education Act 2005. The school fosters a warm and welcoming atmosphere, where staff know their pupils well and provide the necessary support for their learning and development. The ambitious curriculum, developed by school leaders, links subjects to school-wide themes, promoting a sense of responsibility among pupils. Parents appreciate the approachable communication from the school, indicating a strong relationship between the school and families. However, there is a need for improvement in staff's use of assessments to ensure that all pupils build their understanding effectively over time.

Strengths

• Pupils benefit from a warm and welcoming culture.
• The school has developed an ambitious and creative curriculum.
• Staff provide bespoke support for pupils with special educational needs.
• Pupils demonstrate positive attitudes towards learning and generally behave well.
• There are strong relationships between adults and pupils.
• The school promotes personal development through a character curriculum.

Areas for Improvement

• Assessment practices are not utilized effectively to support learning.
• Some parents desire more frequent communication about their children's progress.

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 Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School attended 91.1% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 23.2% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

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, 7.6% of pupils at Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). One pupil was 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 Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School had 21.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 26.8% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

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, 27.0% of pupils at Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 7.4% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

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 primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School received £8,345 and spent £8,717 for each of its 157 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £92,000 (£590 per pupil).

Across all 20 schools of The Academies for Character and Excellence, income was £6,628 and spending £6,807 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.

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

Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School is part of The Academies for Character and Excellence, which runs 20 schools. The nearest others:

• Berry Pomeroy Parochial CofE Primary School Totnes
• Collaton St Mary Church of England Primary School Paignton
• Galmpton Church of England Primary School Brixham
• Torre Church of England Academy Torquay
• Brixham Church of England Primary School Brixham
• Shaldon Primary School Teignmouth
• Trinity CofE Primary and Nursery School Exeter
• St Gabriel's CofE Primary School Exeter
• Newtown Primary School Exeter
• Stockland Church of England Primary Academy Honiton

What is Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School is Good, from an inspection in May 2023.

When was Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School was last inspected in May 2023.

How many pupils does Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School have?

Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School has 163 pupils on roll.

What age range does Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School cover?

Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 95% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School?

Totnes St John's Church of England Primary School is at Pathfields, Totnes, Devon, TQ9 5TZ.