Dartmouth Academy

About Dartmouth Academy

Dartmouth Academy sits in the Devon local authority, a mixed, all-through state school for pupils aged 3 to 19 in the South Hams borough. When measured by Progress 8, it ranks 37th out of 43 secondary schools in Devon, placing it in the bottom half of the county. For context, the top-performing schools in the same local authority include Colyton Grammar School, Chulmleigh Community College, and The Ilfracombe Church of England Academy, all of which post significantly higher ranking scores. Dartmouth Academy’s own Progress 8 score of -0.47 is well below the Devon average of -0.09, and its national percentile of 81.4 puts it in the bottom 50 tier of schools across England. Within the South Hams district specifically, it ranks 4th out of 4 schools, meaning it is the lowest-ranked secondary in its immediate area. The school is oversubscribed for 2025/26, with 56 applications for 36 places, and 33 of those were first-preference offers, suggesting local demand remains steady despite the academic ranking.

Academically, the school’s most recent Ofsted inspection in 2023 rated it Good overall, with Good marks across all categories including quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management. This is consistent with its previous 2017 inspection, which also rated it Good. At Key Stage 4, the school’s Attainment 8 score is 43.1, and 63.2% of pupils achieved a grade 4 or above in English and maths, though only 31.6% reached grade 5 or above. The English Baccalaureate entry rate is 39.5%, with 26.3% achieving the measure at grade 4 and 18.4% at grade 5. The Progress 8 breakdown shows the weakest area is English, at -1.02, while the open element is close to average at -0.04. The EBacc average point score is 3.7. Compared with the Devon LA average Progress 8 of -0.09, the school’s -0.47 indicates that pupils on average make less progress than their peers across the county.

The school offers a wide range of facilities including a swimming pool, theatre, art studios, music rooms, and a sixth form centre, and it has nursery provision for younger children. Sports on offer include rowing, rugby, hockey, and cricket, while clubs range from Model UN and Young Enterprise to the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and coding. SEND provision is broad, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, autistic spectrum disorder, and social, emotional and mental health needs. With 27.4% of pupils eligible for free school meals, the school serves a relatively disadvantaged intake. Dartmouth Academy is a good fit for families in the South Hams area who want a single-site school from nursery through to sixth form, particularly those who value a strong pastoral and SEND support system and a broad extracurricular programme, but who are comfortable with academic outcomes that sit below the local average.

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