Bishops Tawton Primary School

North Devon · EX32 0AE

General information Primary School · 4-11 years Who goes here 161 pupils, 6.8% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted report card

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 4.3% on SEN support Behaviour 3.7% absence rate Staff 10% turnover Financials £7,383 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Bishops Tawton Primary School

General Information

Address: School Lane, Bishops Tawton, Barnstaple, EX32 0AE – View on map
Phone: 01271343002
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mrs Melanie Smallwood
Age range: 4-11 years
Demand for places (Reception, September 2026): 22 families put it first for 23 places – 10 for every 10 places. Every one of them was offered a place. No places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 10 · 2024 9 · 2025 10 · 2026 10
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Does not apply
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

161 pupils out of 168 places At or near capacity

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 11
% eligible for free school meals: 6.8%
Pupil mix: 1 in 10 (less mixed than the North Devon average)
English as an additional language: 1% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 10% a year (North Devon 16.8%, typical in England 13.9%)
Where they went: about 54% moved to another school, 46% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house. This is a small staff, so one or two teachers leaving moves the figure a lot.

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Across Devon: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 8 (0.1 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 6 (0.1 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 1 (0.0 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.0)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state primary schools in Devon (the council area this school is in), not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 3.7%
Persistently absent pupils: 4.7%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

Pupils on SEN Support: 4.3%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 0.6%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Autistic spectrum disorder: 3 pupils
SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need: 2 pupils
Hearing impairment: 1 pupil
Other difficulty or disability: 1 pupil

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Social, emotional and mental health: 1 pupil

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

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Behaviour

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Openness

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Teaching Quality

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School Ethos

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Ability to Deal with Problems

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Headteacher Approval

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SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

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Wraparound CareWraparound Care (parent rating)How parents rate the school's breakfast and after-school clubs - availability, cost and quality. Only asked for infant, junior and primary schools, where it matters most for working parents.

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Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Ofsted report card May 2026

Ofsted's new report cards grade each part of school life separately, instead of giving one overall word.

Safeguarding Met
Inclusion Expected standard
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Achievement Expected standard
Attendance and behaviour Expected standard
Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard
Early years Expected standard
Leadership and governance Expected standard

Before this, under the old system, Ofsted rated the school Good (2022). The report card above replaces that grade.

How Ofsted report cards work

Since November 2025, Ofsted grades each area of a school on its own five-point scale, and no longer gives a single word like “Good” or “Outstanding”. Safeguarding (keeping children safe) is simply met or not met.

Exceptional The very best practice nationally
Strong standard Above what Ofsted expects
Expected standard What Ofsted expects of every school
Needs attention Some weaknesses the school needs to fix
Urgent improvement Serious weaknesses needing urgent action

“Expected standard” is a sound result – it's what Ofsted expects a good school to do. Report cards aren't directly comparable with the old single grades, which is why we don't turn them into one.

Year 6 SATs results

Met the expected standard in reading, writing & maths: 54% (England 62%)
Reached the higher standard: 0% (England 8%)
Compared with the area: in line with the North Devon average (56%)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: As expected (3-year average 66% against an expected 68%)
3-year average (expected standard): 66%
Expected standard by subject: Reading 77% · Writing 69% · Maths 65% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 69%
Average test scores: reading 107, maths 103
Based on: 26 Year 6 pupils, 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's SATs results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

SATs results over time

This schoolNorth Devon averageEngland↘ Falling Down 19 percentage points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was in line with the North Devon average (56%).

Year 6 SATs: joint 19th of 37 junior and primary schools in the area

#17Landkey Community Primary Academy57%
#18Caen Community Primary School55%
=19Bishops Tawton Primary School54%
=19Eden Park Academy54%
=21Newport Community School Primary Academy52%

Click to see the full ranking

Year 6 SATs ranking

Junior and primary schools in this area, ranked by the % of Year 6 pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (official DfE results, 2024/25). Schools with the same result share a place (shown as =). In small schools one or two children can move a school several places, so treat close positions as roughly equal.

Rank School Score

=1Kingsacre Primary School88%
=1Witheridge Church of England Primary Academy88%
#3Umberleigh Primary Academy86%
#4Ashleigh CofE Primary School79%
#5Horwood and Newton Tracey Community Primary School77%
#6Parracombe Church of England Primary School75%
=7Instow Community Primary and Pre-School72%
=7Southmead School72%
=9Combe Martin Primary School70%
=9Woolacombe School70%
#11Swimbridge Church of England Primary School69%
=12Goodleigh Church of England Primary School67%
=12Lynton Church of England Primary School67%
#14North Molton Primary School65%
#15Pilton Bluecoat Church of England Academy63%
#16Sticklepath Community Primary Academy60%
#17Landkey Community Primary Academy57%
#18Caen Community Primary School55%
=19Bishops Tawton Primary School54%
=19Eden Park Academy54%
=21Newport Community School Primary Academy52%
=21South Molton United CofE Primary School52%
#23Orchard Vale Community School51%
=24Kentisbury Primary School50%
=24Our Lady's Catholic Primary School, Barnstaple50%
=26Fremington Primary School46%
=26Georgeham Church of England Primary School46%
=28Chulmleigh Primary School45%
=28Holywell Church of England School45%
#30Yeo Valley Primary School43%
#31Rackenford Church of England Primary School42%
#32Bishops Nympton Primary School40%
#33Ilfracombe Church of England Junior School37%
=34Bratton Fleming Community Primary School33%
=34East Worlington Primary School33%
#36Filleigh Community Primary School20%
#37Shirwell Community Primary School13%

View full Ofsted inspection report

Financials

Spending per pupil: £7,383 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

12th of 36 primary schools in North Devon for spending per pupil

#10Umberleigh Primary Academy£7,792
#11Swimbridge Church of England Primary School£7,601
#12Bishops Tawton Primary School£7,383
#13Horwood and Newton Tracey Community Primary School£7,313
#14South Molton United CofE Primary School£7,031

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

Rank School Score

#1Shirwell Community Primary School£14,000
#2Bratton Fleming Community Primary School£11,721
#3Holywell Church of England School£11,012
#4Brayford Academy£10,828
#5Kentisbury Primary School£10,349
#6Georgeham Church of England Primary School£9,143
#7East Anstey Primary School£9,085
#8East Worlington Primary School£8,965
#9Ashleigh CofE Primary School£8,476
#10Umberleigh Primary Academy£7,792
#11Swimbridge Church of England Primary School£7,601
#12Bishops Tawton Primary School£7,383
#13Horwood and Newton Tracey Community Primary School£7,313
#14South Molton United CofE Primary School£7,031
#15Kingsacre Primary School£6,952
#16Goodleigh Church of England Primary School£6,893
#17Witheridge Church of England Primary Academy£6,864
#18Southmead School£6,848
#19West Down School£6,802
#20Orchard Vale Community School£6,744
#21Our Lady's Catholic Primary School, Barnstaple£6,664
#22Caen Community Primary School£6,616
#23Instow Community Primary and Pre-School£6,544
#24Woolacombe School£6,302
#25Combe Martin Primary School£6,000
#26Chulmleigh Primary School£5,529
#27Marwood School£4,186
#28Eden Park Academy£4,155
#29Landkey Community Primary Academy£3,833
#30North Molton Primary School£3,789
#31Sticklepath Community Primary Academy£3,463
#32Newport Community School Primary Academy£3,451
#33Fremington Primary School£2,976
#34South Molton Community Primary School£2,974
#35Roundswell Community Primary Academy£2,644
#36Yeo Valley Primary School£54

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

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