Oldway Primary School

About Oldway Primary School

Oldway Primary School in Torbay is a large state primary for children aged 2 to 11, and its headline Key Stage 2 results sit noticeably below the local authority average. In the 2023/24 academic year, 44% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with a Torbay average of 61%. That gap of 17 percentage points places the school 26th out of 29 primaries in the local authority ranking, putting it in the bottom half nationally. The picture is mixed when you look at individual subjects: reading scores are the strongest, with 67% of pupils meeting the expected level and an average scaled score of 103, while maths sits at 56% expected and a score of 101. Writing is the weakest area, with just 51% reaching the expected standard and only 2% achieving a higher standard. For parents comparing options, these figures suggest that while Oldway is a popular school, its academic outcomes are not currently keeping pace with most other primaries in Torbay.

The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection, in June 2024, rated it Good overall, with Good across all five categories including quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. This is a downgrade from its previous inspection in 2013, when it was judged Outstanding across the board. The inspection report notes that the school has held a Good rating across both its recent inspections, but the shift from Outstanding is significant. In terms of pupil intake, 18.1% of children are eligible for free school meals, which is slightly above the national average and may partly explain the lower attainment figures. The school does not publish Progress 8 scores for primary, so it is hard to say how much value it adds relative to pupils’ starting points, but the raw results are clearly below the local benchmark.

Oldway is a popular school with a strong local reputation, reflected in its oversubscribed admissions for 2025/26: 139 applications for 76 places, a ratio of 1.83 applicants per place, with 74 offers made to first-preference families. The school has a wide range of facilities including a library, ICT suite, sports hall, art studios and a chapel, and offers clubs such as science, coding, chess, book club and gardening. Sports include football, tennis, cricket and netball. For children with additional needs, the school lists provisions for dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social and emotional mental health, speech and language needs, visual impairment, and autistic spectrum disorder. With nursery provision on site, it suits families looking for a full primary journey from age 2, though those prioritising strong academic outcomes may want to compare it with higher-performing local options like Hayes School, which is 1.4 km away and rated Outstanding.

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