Paignton Academy, Paignton
Paignton Academy is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16 in Paignton, part of The Thinking Schools Academy Trust. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in November 2016. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in December 2024 did not change this grade. Its 2026 GCSE results were the 7th-highest of the 9 schools in Torbay with published results, and 2,830th of 3,298 across England. It was 86% full in 2025.
- GCSE results
- Below England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2016)
- Demand
- Oversubscribed
- Attendance
- Below England average
- Progress (2024)
- Well below average
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 5 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to Torbay (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Paignton Academy in detail
Paignton Academy in its own words
Clubs and activities named on the school's website include football and drama.
Coming up: an open evening on Thursday 17 June 2027. Check the school's website before you go, as dates can change.
All school open days in Torbay
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2026, pupils at Paignton Academy averaged an Attainment 8 score of 38.5, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 49.6 in Torbay and 47 across England.
30% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 54% in Torbay and 47% in England.
That is up from 36.9 in 2025.
Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -0.63: pupils made well below average progress compared with pupils nationally who started secondary school at the same level. Progress 8 was not published for 2026.
Disadvantaged pupils averaged an Attainment 8 of 31.5, against 41.8 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 10.3 points.
Pupils sat GCSEs in 22 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, Geography and History.
Getting a place at Paignton Academy
For September 2026 entry, 265 families put Paignton Academy as their first choice and 378 named it as one of their preferences, for 286 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. 4 families who put it first were not offered a place there.
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to Paignton Academy are Churston Ferrers Grammar School Academy (2.6 miles, Good, selective, Attainment 8 67.3); Torquay Boys' Grammar School (3.4 miles, Good, selective, Attainment 8 70); Torquay Girls' Grammar School (3.5 miles, Outstanding, selective, Attainment 8 68.4); and Torquay Academy (3.9 miles, Good, Attainment 8 48.7).
Each of them had higher 2026 results than Paignton Academy.
Churston Ferrers Grammar School AcademyTorquay Boys' Grammar SchoolTorquay Girls' Grammar SchoolTorquay Academy
The trust
Paignton Academy is one of 26 schools run by The Thinking Schools Academy Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 45.9 in 2024/25.
What parents say
112 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Paignton Academy (as of September 2025): 62% would recommend the school, 64% say their child is happy there and 51% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that they are kept well informed about progress (70%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (51%).
Where pupils go next
Of the 225 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 85% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 79% to a further education college, 5% to an apprenticeship and 2% into work.
Who goes there
34.1% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 6.5% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
Getting there
The nearest tram or metro stop is Paignton (Paignton and Dartmouth Railway), about 1 mile away in a straight line.
18 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Paignton Community Sports Academy (outside), 60 metres away.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Paignton Academy issued 555 suspensions, 35.1 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 9 permanent exclusions.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to Paignton Academy are Hayes School (0.4 miles), St Michael's Church of England Academy (0.7 miles), Collaton St Mary Church of England Primary School (0.7 miles) and Roselands Primary School (0.8 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
Hayes SchoolSt Michael's Church of England AcademyCollaton St Mary Church of England Primary SchoolRoselands Primary School
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; Ofsted Parent View; DfE destination measures; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from November 2016, 9 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's December 2024 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
The school creates a strong sense of community across its two sites and provides excellent personal development opportunities, including careers education that prepares pupils well for their next steps. SEND support has improved significantly, ensuring all pupils are included in school life. Staff are developing stronger teaching skills through comprehensive professional development and the curriculum is well-structured to help pupils build deeper understanding.
Key Strengths
- Curriculum is well-organised and allows pupils to develop deeper understanding, particularly evident in key stage 3
- SEND provision has significantly improved with quick identification of needs and appropriate support
- Personal development programme is strong, covering healthy relationships, online safety, and careers education
- Staff are becoming more confident in using the trust's teaching approaches through professional development
- Safeguarding arrangements are effective and pupils feel safe in school
Areas for Improvement
- Teaching strategies are inconsistently applied, hindering learning in some subjects
- Pupil behaviour outside lessons needs improvement, with some using derogatory language that isn't challenged
- Too many pupils miss significant learning time due to absence from school, particularly disadvantaged pupils
- Reading support for early readers is in its infancy with more work needed to establish a reading for pleasure culture
- School leadership has lacked clear oversight of initiatives, causing slow improvement pace until recently
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective with leaders prioritising pupils' wellbeing and creating an open culture around safeguarding.
Extracurricular Activities
Duke of Edinburgh's Award, sports clubs, school productions, sports leadership roles, mental health ambassador roles, translator support
Paignton Academy operates across two sites and has redesigned its curriculum to be broad and ambitious. The school requires improvement in quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, and leadership and management, though personal development is rated as good.
About
Paignton Academy is a secondary school with academy status, located in Devon, England.
From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
At a Glance
34.1%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
112 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Secondary Performance (GCSE)
Academic year 2025/26GCSE Results
2025/26 academic year
Progress 8 has declined from -0.30 to -0.63 (2023 to 2024). Attainment 8 has declined from 38.9 to 38.5 (2023 to 2026). GCSE English & Maths 5+ has improved from 20% to 30% (2023 to 2026).
Performance by Group
| Group | Progress 8 | Attainment 8 | Eng+Maths 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pupils | - | 38.5 | 30.1% |
| Disadvantaged(92) | - | 31.5 | 23.9% |
| Not known to be disadvantaged(194) | - | 41.8 | 33% |
| Boys(152) | - | 37.2 | 31.6% |
| Girls(134) | - | 40.0 | 28.4% |
Show more breakdowns (2)
| Known or believed to be other than English(20) | - | 45.2 | 30% |
| Non mobile(272) | - | 39.4 | 30.9% |
2025/26 academic year - DfE performance tables data
GCSE Subjects Offered
+ 2 more subjects
2025/26 academic year - entries by number of pupils
After GCSEs - Leaver Destinations
After GCSEs (Year 11) - 225 students
2023/24 data
Exclusions & Suspensions
9
Permanent exclusions
0.57%
Exclusion rate
555
Suspensions
35.08%
Suspension rate
154 pupils received one or more suspensions out of 1,582 pupils
2024/25 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby secondary schools
Keep up with Paignton Academy
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Paignton Academy from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Paignton Academy is in Torbay; for families living there:
Apply to Torbay for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 29
- Fatal
- 1
- Serious
- 9
- Children hurt
- 4
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 29 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 9 serious and 19 slight.
4 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 3 on foot and 1 in a vehicle or otherwise.
9 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 Torbay is 18 (the median across 47 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 Paignton Academy
Will you get a place at Paignton Academy? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Paignton Academy's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Paignton Academy:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Paignton Academy.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Torbay, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Paignton Academy for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Torbay 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
86%
Available places
1,551 pupils
1,800 places
249 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Paignton
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Paignton
Across Torbay council
Places available
1,759
Applications
1,279
Got 1st preference
79.7%
Got preferred school
92.9%
All secondary applications across Torbay council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Oversubscribed
Inspection History(5)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
281
SEN Support
79
EHC Plans
23.0%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
1,568
Total Pupils
844
Boys
724
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
101
Teachers
15.5:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£50,959
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£7,294
Per pupil
£12466k
Total funding
£549k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
11.4%
Overall absence
29.5%
Persistent absence
1,647
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
Paignton Academy
Questions parents ask about Paignton Academy
What are GCSE results like at Paignton Academy?
In the 2026 results, pupils at Paignton Academy achieved an Attainment 8 score of 38.5. 30% passed GCSE English and maths at grade 5 or above.
What is Paignton Academy's Ofsted rating?
Paignton Academy's most recent Ofsted inspection, in December 2024, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in November 2016, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Paignton Academy?
No fixed boundary. When Paignton Academy is oversubscribed, Torbay allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Paignton Academy?
Paignton Academy was not full in 2025: it ran at 86% of its 1800 places.
How big are the classes at Paignton Academy?
Classes at Paignton Academy average 23.3 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Paignton Academy?
Paignton Academy has around 1568 pupils on roll. 34% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Paignton Academy?
11.4% of sessions were missed at Paignton Academy in 2024/25. 29.5% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Paignton Academy?
Apply through Torbay's coordinated admissions process, naming Paignton Academy on your application. Applications for Year 7 places starting in September 2027 close on Saturday 31 October 2026, and offers are made on Monday 1 March 2027.
How many road collisions happen near Paignton Academy?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 29 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 9 serious and 19 slight. 4 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 3 on foot and 1 in a vehicle or otherwise. 9 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 Torbay is 18 (the median across 47 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Paignton Academy?
Paignton Academy is at Waterleat Road, Paignton, Devon, TQ3 3WA.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)