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Orchard Vale Community School

North Devon, EX32 8QYPrimaryAges 3–11MixedState
Ofsted Rating
Good
May 2023
KS2 Results
63%
meeting expected standard in RWM
Competition
1.0×
Not oversubscribed
34 1st-choice / 35 places
Ranking
#6,749
of 13,686 nationally

About Orchard Vale Community School

Orchard Vale Community School is a popular choice among local families, with 34 of its 35 reception places for 2025/26 going to first-preference applicants and an oversubscription ratio of 1. 34. That means for every place, more than one family put it as their top pick, a solid signal of parent confidence. The school doesn't publish a formal parent-view survey, but the demand speaks for itself. Headteacher Fiona Pearce leads a mixed, state primary for children aged 3 to 11, with nursery provision on site. The school is non-religious and sits in North Devon, part of the Devon local authority. Its most recent Ofsted inspection, in 2023, rated it Good across every category — quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision — all scoring a 2 on the four-point scale. That's a consistent improvement from its previous inspection in 2011, which also rated overall effectiveness as Good but didn't grade several areas.

Key Details

School TypePrimary (State)
Age Range3 to 11 years
GenderMixed
Religious CharacterDoes not apply
AddressWestacott Road, Barnstaple, North Devon, EX32 8QY
HeadteacherFiona Pearce
Local AuthorityDevon
Number of Pupils323
Free School Meals (FSM)24.8%
School Capacity323 / 368 (88% full)
Nursery ClassesYes

The full report on this school

The inspection in plain English, admissions context, and how this school compares to nearby alternatives — all in one full school report.

  • Ofsted inspection in plain English
    Strengths, concerns and what inspectors flagged
  • Parent View survey results
    What parents told Ofsted — when the school has 10+ responses
  • Where Ofsted and parents disagree
    Gaps to probe + questions to ask at the open day
  • Admissions & catchment
    Admission criteria, distance cutoffs (where the LA publishes them)
  • Nearby schools compared
    Backup options with Ofsted, demand and distance
  • Attendance & behaviour data
    Persistent absentees, suspensions and exclusions vs national
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Ofsted Inspection Breakdown

10 May 2023
View Report
Overall Effectiveness
Good
Quality of Education
Good
Behaviour & Attitudes
Good
Personal Development
Good
Leadership & Management
Good
Early Years Provision
Good

Source: Ofsted, 25 Jun 2023. Ratings: 1=Outstanding, 2=Good, 3=Requires Improvement, 4=Inadequate.

SEND Support

AutismDyslexiaMental HealthSpeech & LanguageVisionLearning Difficulty

Source: Department for Education, 2024/25. Support availability based on current student population.

School day

Verified

Teaching hours

08:50 – 15:20

After-school care

15:15-17:00

Source: ovschool.co.uk. Extracted automatically — confirm with the school before relying on these times.

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Frequently Asked Questions About Orchard Vale Community School

Orchard Vale Community School has been rated "Good" by Ofsted. This means the school provides a good standard of education and effectively supports all pupils to succeed.