Fremington Primary School, Barnstaple
Fremington Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 11 in Barnstaple, part of The Harbour Schools Partnership. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 17th-highest of the 20 schools in Barnstaple with published results, and 13,336th of 14,452 across England. It was 77% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Below England average
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Devon (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Fremington Primary School in detail
Fremington Primary School in its own words
In its own words: "At Fremington Primary School we work together to create a school that is caring, inclusive and celebrates learning for life. We have curiosity and motivation to become active, independent thinkers who are not afraid to make mistakes and embrace opportunity. We are kind and caring, coming together to celebrate differences, where everyone has a sense of belonging."
The school runs a breakfast club from 8:00am and after-school care.
Vision and values (school website)Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 62% of Year 6 pupils at Fremington Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 52% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 77% and 73% in Devon and 77% and 75% across England.
Results were similar in 2024 (63% in reading, 51% in maths).
Getting a place at Fremington Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 29 families put Fremington Primary School as their first choice and 41 named it as one of their preferences, for 29 places offered. That is one first choice for every place. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at Fremington Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Fremington Primary School are Roundswell Community Primary Academy (1.4 miles, Good); Instow Community Primary and Pre-School (1.9 miles, Good, 89% reading, 83% maths); Sticklepath Community Primary Academy (2 miles, Good, 80% reading, 75% maths); and Southmead School (2.6 miles, Good, 87% reading, 82% maths).
Each of them had higher 2025 results than Fremington Primary School.
Roundswell Community Primary AcademyInstow Community Primary and Pre-SchoolSticklepath Community Primary AcademySouthmead School
The trust
Fremington Primary School is one of 36 schools run by The Harbour Schools Partnership, an academy trust.
What parents say
75 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Fremington Primary School (as of September 2025): 53% would recommend the school, 69% say their child is happy there and 36% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (73%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (36%).
Who goes there
1% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Barnstaple Rail Station, about 2.8 miles away in a straight line.
6 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Shops (w-bound), 70 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 10 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, drug offences and other theft. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Devon (16).
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Fremington Primary School issued 68 suspensions, 19.7 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 2 permanent exclusions.
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Every family who put it first was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance did not limit places that year.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Fremington Primary School has had no graded Ofsted inspection since it took its current form in July 2020. Before that, as Fremington Community Primary and Nursery School (URN 113149), it was rated Good in November 2012.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's February 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Fremington Primary School excels at teaching young children to read through rigorous phonics instruction and has created a warm, welcoming environment where pupils feel safe and supported. The school offers a well-designed curriculum with progressive skill-building and enriches learning through clubs, outdoor activities, and cultural trips. New leadership has brought clear direction and is making positive changes to help pupils succeed.
Key Strengths
- Excellent phonics and early reading teaching, with strong support for pupils who struggle - pupils learn to read quickly and achieve well in phonics screening checks
- Rich early years curriculum focused on developing children's vocabulary and language skills
- Coherent curriculum design in most subjects that builds pupils' skills progressively from early years to Year 6
- Warm relationships between staff and pupils with a clear focus on pastoral care and friendship skills
- Improving behaviour across the school following implementation of new behaviour policy
Areas for Improvement
- Teachers' checks on pupils' understanding are not specific enough in some subjects, leaving misconceptions unaddressed and creating gaps in learning
- Inconsistent implementation of the new behaviour policy by staff and pupils, leading to mixed expectations around behaviour
- Support for pupils with SEND (except those in specialist Cocoon and Ark provisions) lacks precision and consistency
- Staff expectations of what pupils can achieve are sometimes too low, with work left unfinished
- Attendance remains below the national average despite recent improvements
Safeguarding
The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
Extracurricular Activities
craft club, basketball club, cricket club, school choir, rock climbing at outdoor centres, sports leader roles, trips to planetarium and science museum in Bristol, West End theatre performances in London
Fremington Primary School is a friendly and welcoming school where new leadership since September 2024 has brought stability and raised expectations. However, the impact of the school's ambitious vision is not yet fully realised, and some pupils do not achieve as well as they could.
At a Glance
18.1%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
75 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has remained stable at around 62% (2024 to 2025). Maths has remained stable at around 52% (2024 to 2025). Writing has declined from 63% to 58% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
25.1
Avg class size
26.3
Infant (KS1)
26.6
KS2
12
Total classes
1 class with more than 30 pupils
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Fremington Primary School
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Fremington Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Fremington Primary School is in Devon; for families living there:
- Devon's school travel policy: Free school transport
- How to apply: Apply for free school transport
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 1
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 0
- Children hurt
- 0
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 1 road collision in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 1 slight.
No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt.
0 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Devon is 3 (the median across 426 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Fremington Primary School
Will you get a place at Fremington Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Fremington Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Fremington Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Fremington Primary School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Devon, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Fremington Primary School for 2021 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Devon got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
77%
Available places
315 pupils
411 places
96 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Barnstaple
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Barnstaple
Across Devon council
Places available
9,014
Applications
6,494
Got 1st preference
96.5%
Got preferred school
99.1%
All primary applications across Devon council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(2)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
64
SEN Support
10
EHC Plans
23.9%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
309
Total Pupils
161
Boys
148
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
17
Teachers
18.2:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£48,015
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,015
Per pupil
£1820k
Total funding
£95k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.9%
Overall absence
16.2%
Persistent absence
290
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Questions parents ask about Fremington Primary School
What are SATs results like at Fremington Primary School?
Of the pupils at Fremington Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 62% reached the expected standard in reading and 52% did so in maths.
What is Fremington Primary School's Ofsted rating?
Fremington Primary School has had no graded Ofsted inspection since it took its current form in July 2020. Before that, as Fremington Community Primary and Nursery School (URN 113149), it was rated Good in November 2012.
What is the catchment area for Fremington Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When Fremington Primary School is oversubscribed, Devon allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Fremington Primary School?
Fremington Primary School was not full in 2025: it ran at 77% of its 411 places.
How big are the classes at Fremington Primary School?
Classes at Fremington Primary School average 25.1 pupils (2025/26). 1 class has more than 30 pupils - infant classes are capped at 30 by law, with limited exceptions.
How many pupils go to Fremington Primary School?
Fremington Primary School has around 309 pupils on roll. 18% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Fremington Primary School?
5.9% of sessions were missed at Fremington Primary School in 2024/25. 16.2% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Fremington Primary School?
Apply through Devon's coordinated admissions process, naming Fremington Primary School on your application. Applications for Reception places starting in September 2027 close on Friday 15 January 2027, and offers are made on Friday 16 April 2027.
How many road collisions happen near Fremington Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 1 road collision in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 1 slight. No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt. 0 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Devon is 3 (the median across 426 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Fremington Primary School?
Fremington Primary School is at Beechfield Road, Fremington, Barnstaple, Devon, EX31 3DD.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)