Castle Primary School

Mid Devon · EX16 6QR

General information Primary School · 4-11 years Who goes here 293 pupils, 35.8% FSM

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 13% on SEN support Behaviour 4.8% absence rate Staff 15.1% turnover Financials £7,329 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Castle Primary School

General Information

Address: Barrington Street, Tiverton, EX16 6QR – View on map
Phone: 01884253398
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr Thomas Paddon
Age range: 4-11 years
Demand for places (Reception, September 2026): 41 families put it first for 41 places – 10 for every 10 places. Every one of them was offered a place. 1 of the 41 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 10 · 2024 10 · 2025 10 · 2026 10
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Does not apply
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

293 pupils out of 420 places Plenty of room

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 105
% eligible for free school meals: 35.8%
Pupil mix: 4 in 10 (more mixed than the Mid Devon average)
English as an additional language: 15% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 15.1% a year (Mid Devon 15.4%, typical in England 13.9%)
Where they went: about 43% moved to another school, 57% 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.

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: 4.8%
Persistently absent pupils: 11.4%
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: 13.0%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 3.1%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Speech, language and communications needs: 17 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 9 pupils
Other difficulty or disability: 4 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 4 pupils
Vision impairment: 1 pupil

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Speech, language and communications needs: 3 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 3 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 2 pupils
Hearing impairment: 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

Good 2023 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted changed how it rates schools in the last couple of years, so ratings from different years aren't always on the same scale - that's why we show the year alongside every rating.

Year 6 SATs results

Met the expected standard in reading, writing & maths: 44% (England 62%)
Reached the higher standard: 4% (England 8%)
Compared with the area: 13 percentage points below the Mid Devon average (57%)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Well below (3-year average 44% against an expected 58%)
3-year average (expected standard): 44%
Expected standard by subject: Reading 63% · Writing 56% · Maths 52% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 56%
Average test scores: reading 104, maths 100
Based on: 27 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 schoolMid Devon averageEngland→ Broadly steady No clear rise or fall since 2022/23 (changes this small are normal from one year group to the next). In 2024/25 this school was 13 percentage points below the Mid Devon average (57%).

Year 6 SATs: 30th of 34 junior and primary schools in the area

=27Copplestone Primary School46%
#29St John's Catholic Primary School45%
#30Castle Primary School44%
#31Bow Community Primary School40%
#32Heathcoat Primary School28%

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

#1Burlescombe Church of England Primary School86%
#2The Duchy School Bradninch85%
#3Morchard Bishop Church of England Primary School83%
#4Uplowman Church of England Primary School82%
#5Tidcombe Primary School70%
#6Hayward's Primary School69%
#7Hemyock Primary School67%
#8Landscore Primary School65%
=9Cheriton Bishop Community Primary School64%
=9Kentisbeare Church of England Primary School64%
=11Bickleigh on Exe Church of England Primary School63%
=11Culmstock Primary School63%
=11St Andrew's Primary School63%
#14Sandford School62%
=15Bampton Church of England Primary School60%
=15Thorverton Church of England Primary School60%
#17Uffculme Primary School59%
#18Willand School58%
=19Bolham Community Primary School56%
=19Silverton Church of England Primary School56%
=19St Thomas of Canterbury CofE Primary School56%
=19Willowbank Primary School56%
#23Two Moors Primary School55%
#24Newton St Cyres Primary School53%
=25Sampford Peverell Church of England Primary School50%
=25Webber's Church of England Primary School50%
=27Cheriton Fitzpaine Primary School46%
=27Copplestone Primary School46%
#29St John's Catholic Primary School45%
#30Castle Primary School44%
#31Bow Community Primary School40%
#32Heathcoat Primary School28%
#33Wilcombe Primary School17%
#34Halberton Primary School0%

View full Ofsted inspection report

2nd of 21 primary schools in Mid Devon for Ofsted rating

#1Bampton Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#2Castle Primary SchoolGood
#3Cheriton Fitzpaine Primary SchoolGood
#4Copplestone Primary SchoolGood

Click to see the full ranking

Ofsted Rating ranking

Based on real Ofsted ratings (via official DfE data) for schools on the same four-word grading scale.

Rank School Score

#1Bampton Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#2Castle Primary SchoolGood
#3Cheriton Fitzpaine Primary SchoolGood
#4Copplestone Primary SchoolGood
#5Culmstock Primary SchoolGood
#6Halberton Primary SchoolGood
#7Landscore Primary SchoolGood
#8Morchard Bishop Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#9Newton St Cyres Primary SchoolGood
#10Sampford Peverell Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#11Sandford SchoolGood
#12St Andrew's Primary SchoolGood
#13St John's Catholic Primary SchoolGood
#14Thorverton Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#15Tidcombe Primary SchoolGood
#16Uffculme Primary SchoolGood
#17Uplowman Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#18Willand SchoolGood
#19Willowbank Primary SchoolGood
#20Yeoford Community Primary SchoolGood
#21Heathcoat Primary SchoolRequires improvement

Financials

Spending per pupil: £7,329 (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.

13th of 30 primary schools in Mid Devon for spending per pupil

#11Burlescombe Church of England Primary School£7,761
#12Uplowman Church of England Primary School£7,478
#13Castle Primary School£7,329
#14Bickleigh on Exe Church of England Primary School£7,015
#15Bolham Community Primary School£6,946

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

#1St Thomas of Canterbury CofE Primary School£12,245
#2Copplestone Primary School£10,156
#3Yeoford Community Primary School£10,000
#4Wilcombe Primary School£9,886
#5St John's Catholic Primary School£8,079
#6Newton St Cyres Primary School£8,055
#7Heathcoat Primary School£8,006
#8Sampford Peverell Church of England Primary School£7,883
#9Halberton Primary School£7,825
#10Kentisbeare Church of England Primary School£7,781
#11Burlescombe Church of England Primary School£7,761
#12Uplowman Church of England Primary School£7,478
#13Castle Primary School£7,329
#14Bickleigh on Exe Church of England Primary School£7,015
#15Bolham Community Primary School£6,946
#16Hemyock Primary School£6,774
#17Two Moors Primary School£6,699
#18Bow Community Primary School£6,667
#19Webber's Church of England Primary School£6,632
#20Morchard Bishop Church of England Primary School£6,431
#21Bampton Church of England Primary School£6,344
#22Hayward's Primary School£6,234
#23Willand School£6,176
#24Willowbank Primary School£6,146
#25Landscore Primary School£6,029
#26Uffculme Primary School£6,020
#27The Duchy School Bradninch£5,985
#28Tidcombe Primary School£5,982
#29St Andrew's Primary School£5,924
#30Cheriton Bishop Community Primary School£5,861

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

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