West Exe School, Exeter

Ofsted's report card from its 16 June 2026 inspection grades West Exe School on 6 areas: 5 expected standard and 1 needs attention. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.

Achievement - Expected standard. "Pupils generally make good progress and are ready for their next stages of learning."

Curriculum and teaching - Expected standard. "Leaders have an accurate understanding of the quality of the school's curriculum and teaching."

Inclusion - Expected standard. "Leaders identify and assess pupils' needs effectively."

Leadership and governance - Expected standard. "Leaders generally have an accurate understanding of the school's strengths and areas for development."

Personal development and wellbeing - Expected standard. "Leaders have designed an appropriate personal development programme."

Attendance and behaviour - Needs attention. "While leaders have appropriate ambitions, a significant minority of pupils are persistently absent."

Safeguarding standards were met.

Ofsted's next steps for the school: "Leaders should raise further pupils attendance, especially the attendance of disadvantaged pupils and those who face other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing"; "Leaders should ensure that they gain precise insights into the impact of their work, so that they adapt strategies to bring about continuous improvement and give assurances of this to those responsible for governance"; "Leaders should ensure that teachers check consistently that pupils have gained intended knowledge, so that teaching can be adjusted to tackle any misunderstandings that pupils have"; "Leaders should raise their expectations of the quality and accuracy of pupils' written language, so that pupils produce high-quality work across the curriculum".

In 2026, pupils at West Exe School averaged an Attainment 8 score of 48, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 46.2 in Devon and 47 across England.

53% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 45% in Devon and 47% in England.

That is up from 47 in 2025.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 0.16: pupils made above 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 42.6, against 49.4 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 6.8 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 25 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, History and Spanish.

For September 2026 entry, 230 families put West Exe School as their first choice and 330 named it as one of their preferences, for 239 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.

The nearest other state secondary schools to West Exe School are Atkinson Secure Children's Home (1.1 miles); Isca Academy (1.3 miles, Good, Attainment 8 47.4); Matford Brook Academy (1.5 miles); and Thomas Hall School (2.5 miles, Requires improvement, Attainment 8 37.4).

West Exe School's 2026 results were higher than all 2 of them.

West Exe School is one of 18 schools run by The Ted Wragg Multi Academy Trust, an academy trust.

Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 45.6 in 2024/25.

Of the 232 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 84% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 82% to a further education college, 6% to an apprenticeship and 3% into work.

The nearest railway station is Exeter St Thomas Rail Station, about 1110 metres away (roughly a 14-minute walk).

9 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is West Exe College (se-bound), 150 metres away.

In August 2026, police recorded 267 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, shoplifting and anti-social behaviour. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Devon (16), as is usual near a town centre.

In 2024/25, West Exe School issued 231 suspensions, 18.7 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 2 permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to West Exe School are Alphington Primary School (0.5 miles), St Thomas Primary School (0.6 miles), Bowhill Primary School (0.7 miles) and Montgomery Primary School (0.8 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.