Bere Alston Primary Academy

Bere Alston Primary Academy, inspected for the first time since converting to an academy, has demonstrated a strong overall performance, earning a 'Good' rating across all areas. The school has successfully implemented an ambitious curriculum that supports positive attitudes toward learning from the early years, aided by effective teaching practices and warm relationships between staff and pupils. Pupils enjoy a safe and enriching learning environment with access to various extracurricular activities, fostering their personal development and social responsibility. Despite these strengths, the school is still refining assessment methods in certain subjects to ensure consistent learning progression for all pupils.

Strengths

• Pupils enjoy learning and feel safe in a nurturing environment.
• Staff build warm relationships with pupils and their families.
• The school has implemented an ambitious curriculum starting from early years.
• Effective reading instruction is prioritized, helping pupils develop fluency.
• Teachers use their subject knowledge well to clarify new concepts.
• Pupils have access to a wide range of enrichment activities.
• The management of special educational needs is well-executed.

Areas for Improvement

• Some subjects still lack effective assessment processes to identify pupil knowledge gaps.

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 Bere Alston Primary Academy attended 94.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 15.1% 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, 0.0% of pupils at Bere Alston Primary Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No 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 Bere Alston Primary Academy had 17.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% 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, 22.6% of pupils at Bere Alston Primary Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 5.7% 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 Bere Alston Primary Academy received £8,598 and spent £8,706 for each of its 123 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £34,000 (£277 per pupil).

Across all 29 schools of The First Federation Trust, income was £7,461 and spending £7,535 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 Yelverton · Devon local authority: places and applications

Bere Alston Primary Academy is part of The First Federation Trust, which runs 29 schools. The nearest others:

• Mary Dean's CofE Primary School and Nursery Plymouth
• Whitchurch Community Primary School Tavistock
• St Budeaux CofE Primary Academy Plymouth
• Newton Ferrers Church of England Primary School Newton Ferrers Plymouth
• Aveton Gifford CofE Primary School Kingsbridge
• Blackpool Church of England Primary School Newton Abbot
• Salcombe Church of England Primary School Salcombe
• Chudleigh Knighton Church of England Primary School Newton Abbot
• Westcliff Primary Academy Dawlish
• Gatehouse Primary Academy Dawlish

What is Bere Alston Primary Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Bere Alston Primary Academy is Good, from an inspection in May 2024.

When was Bere Alston Primary Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Bere Alston Primary Academy was last inspected in May 2024.

How many pupils does Bere Alston Primary Academy have?

Bere Alston Primary Academy has 106 pupils on roll.

What age range does Bere Alston Primary Academy cover?

Bere Alston Primary Academy for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Bere Alston Primary Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 28% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Bere Alston Primary Academy?

Bere Alston Primary Academy is at Station Road, Bere Alston, Yelverton, Devon, PL20 7AU.