Gatehouse Primary Academy

About Gatehouse Primary Academy

Gatehouse Primary Academy in Teignbridge is a mixed state primary for ages 4 to 11 that currently teaches 316 pupils against a capacity of 420, meaning it has around a quarter of its spaces unfilled. That spare capacity is notable given the school’s intake profile: 32.4% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the national average of roughly 23% and a strong signal that the school serves a community with above-average economic disadvantage. Despite this, demand is solid — for the 2025/26 reception intake, the school received 42 applications for 30 places, with all 30 first-preference families offered a spot, giving an oversubscription ratio of 1.4. That suggests local parents see it as a viable choice, even if it isn’t the most oversubscribed in the area. The school is led by headteacher Leila Naldrett and has no religious character or nursery provision.

Academically, Gatehouse sits in the bottom half of primary schools nationally. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 tests, 54% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with a Devon local authority average of 57%. That gap is modest, but the school’s ranking within Teignbridge places it 144th out of 309 primary schools, and 27th out of 43 in its immediate borough. The proportion hitting the higher standard in all three subjects was just 6%, well below the national figure. Individual subject scores are more encouraging: average reading and maths scaled scores were 104 and 103 respectively, both slightly above the national benchmark of 100, and 74% met the expected standard in reading. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection in December 2021 rated it Good across all categories — a significant turnaround from its previous Inadequate rating in 2017, when leadership and management were graded Requires Improvement.

Facilities are a real strength for a school of this size, with an art studio, sensory room, gymnasium, sports hall, forest school, music rooms, playing fields, ICT suite and even a chapel. The sports offer includes rounders, dance, swimming, cross country, cricket and tennis, while clubs range from chess and coding to gardening, film club and choir. SEND provision is broad, covering dyslexia, speech and language needs, social and emotional mental health, autistic spectrum disorder and other difficulties. For families in Teignbridge who want a well-equipped local primary with strong pastoral support and a Good Ofsted rating, Gatehouse is a realistic option — especially if you’re looking for a school that isn’t stretched to capacity and can offer a sensory room and forest school as part of the daily experience.

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