St Michael's Church of England Primary Academy

About St Michael's Church of England Primary Academy

St Michael's Church of England Primary Academy in Exeter is a state primary for mixed pupils aged 5 to 11, and it is operating very close to capacity with 419 pupils against a school capacity of 420. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals stands at 7.6 per cent, which is notably lower than the national average and suggests a relatively affluent intake. Demand for places is strong: for the 2025/26 academic year, the school received 127 applications for 59 places, making it oversubscribed with a ratio of 2.15 applicants per place. Of those, 66 were first-preference applications, and 56 first-preference offers were made, indicating that most families who put it top got in, but competition remains high. The school has a Church of England religious character and is led by headteacher Luke Williams. Its most recent Ofsted inspection, carried out in February 2025, rated the school as Good overall, with all inspected areas including quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management all judged Good.

Academically, St Michael's performs well against local benchmarks. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 assessments, 69 per cent of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, comfortably above the Devon local authority average of 57 per cent. This places the school 6th out of 17 primary schools in Exeter and in the top 50 per cent nationally. Reading scores were particularly strong, with an average scaled score of 106 and 39 per cent of pupils achieving the higher standard. In maths, the average score was 104, with 14 per cent reaching the higher threshold. Writing saw 19 per cent at the higher standard. The school's previous Ofsted inspection in 2015 had rated it Outstanding overall, so the current Good rating represents a step down, but the inspection report notes that standards remain solid. Parent feedback is overwhelmingly positive: 95 per cent of respondents would recommend the school, and 94 per cent agreed or strongly agreed that their child is happy there.

The school offers a broad range of facilities including a sports hall, playing fields, ICT suite, dining hall and a chapel, and pupils can take part in sports such as football, cricket, netball, swimming, tennis and athletics. Clubs include gardening, choir, film club and book club. For children with additional needs, the school provides support for a wide spectrum of SEND, including specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social and emotional needs, speech and language challenges, hearing and visual impairments, physical disabilities and autistic spectrum disorder. However, the parent view data suggests some mixed feelings on SEND support: while 73 per cent agreed or strongly agreed that SEND children get the support they need, 21 per cent disagreed or strongly disagreed, and 6 per cent did not know. With the school heavily oversubscribed and nearly full, families considering St Michael's should be prepared for a competitive admissions process, particularly for in-year applications. It suits families who value a Church of England ethos, strong core academic results, and a wide extracurricular offer within a well-subscribed local school.

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