Axminster Community Primary Academy

About Axminster Community Primary Academy

Axminster Community Primary Academy is a state primary school in East Devon that currently teaches 300 pupils, just shy of its official capacity of 315. The school serves a community with a notably high proportion of children eligible for free school meals, at 36.7%, which is significantly above the national average and suggests a catchment with considerable economic disadvantage. Demand for places is clear: for the 2025/26 academic year, the school received 51 total applications for its 42 places, making it oversubscribed with a ratio of 1.21 applicants per place. All 42 first-preference applicants were offered a spot, indicating that while the school is popular, families who put it first are likely to secure a place. The school is mixed-gender, non-religious, and caters for children from age 2 through to 11, with nursery provision on site. Headteacher Claire Hulbert leads a school that, despite the challenges of its intake, has maintained a Good rating from Ofsted across its two most recent inspections, the latest of which took place in 2025.

Academically, the school’s Key Stage 2 results for the 2023/24 academic year show a mixed picture. Just 33% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with a local authority average of 57%, placing the school in the bottom 50 nationally for this metric. In individual subjects, 58% reached the expected standard in reading, 44% in writing, and 47% in maths. At the higher standard, the figures are low: 4% achieved the higher standard across all three subjects, with 16% in reading, 7% in writing, and 11% in maths. Average scaled scores were 102 for reading and 100 for maths, both in line with national benchmarks. The school ranks 39th out of 44 primary schools in East Devon, and 226th out of 309 similar schools in the local authority. Ofsted’s 2025 inspection rated all areas as Good, including behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and early years provision, though the overall effectiveness was not judged on this occasion.

The school offers a range of facilities including art studios, a sports hall, playing fields, a sensory room, and a chapel. Sports provision covers football, rounders, tennis, and athletics, while extracurricular clubs include drama, choir, gardening, science, film, and chess. For children with special educational needs, the school lists provisions for dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech and language communication needs, hearing impairment, and autistic spectrum disorder. Parent View responses from 40 respondents between September 2024 and September 2025 show strong overall satisfaction: 83% would recommend the school, and 65% strongly agreed that their child is happy there. However, 18% disagreed that concerns are dealt with properly, and 13% disagreed that SEND children receive the support they need. This school will suit families who value a community-focused primary with strong pastoral care and a broad range of activities, particularly those who are comfortable with its below-average academic outcomes and the high level of disadvantage among its intake.

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