Exmouth Community College Review 2026: A very large, split-site secondary with renewed expectations and a broad sixth form

A school of this size has to work hard to feel coherent. Exmouth Community College is a large, split-site secondary where students move across the site between lessons, which puts a premium on routines, calm movement, and clear expectations. The current headteacher, Tom Inman, took up post in September 2023, and the public message since then is one of rebuilding consistency and strengthening the day-to-day experience.

The latest Ofsted inspection (20 and 21 February 2024) judged the school to require improvement overall, with personal development, leadership and management, and sixth form provision judged good. Safeguarding was found to be effective, which matters in any school, but particularly in one with more than two thousand pupils moving across a split site each day.

This is a comprehensive school with a sixth form. It suits families who want a large, mixed community setting with breadth of curriculum and enrichment, and who value structure and clarity around behaviour expectations, while also understanding that improvement work is still in progress.

Scale is the defining feature here. The school is described in official reporting as a large, split-site setting, and that reality shapes the social feel. At lesson changeovers, most students manage themselves well, but a small minority make corridors and social spaces harder to keep consistently calm.

There is clear evidence of systems designed to make support easier to access. One example is the online “worry” button referenced in the inspection report, which is a practical route for students who find face-to-face disclosure difficult. Pastoral support also has a distinctive local feature: Haven (formerly the ICE Project), a long-running partnership with the local charity Open Door Exmouth. Haven offers 1:1 mentoring for Key Stage 3, a Lunchtime Hub for pupils who find lunchtime challenging, a Monday twilight group for Year 7, and enhanced transition sessions for Year 6.

The school also puts visible effort into belonging and participation. The inspection report points to a broad extra-curricular offer, and highlights performance groups, the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, and a “house band” that meets weekly, plus involvement in a production of Matilda. For a large secondary, these details matter, they are the sorts of shared experiences that help students feel known beyond their timetable.

Governance and oversight have also shifted in recent years. Ofsted currently lists the college as part of The Ted Wragg Multi Academy Trust. The school’s own material describes a deliberate decision-making process about joining a trust, framed around capacity to serve the local community and access external support for improvement.

GCSE performance sits around the middle of the England distribution on the FindMySchool ranking. Ranked 2,375th in England and 1st in Exmouth for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking, based on official data), performance aligns with the middle 35% of schools in England (25th to 60th percentile).

At GCSE, the school’s Attainment 8 score is 43.6. Progress 8 is -0.39, which indicates that, on average, outcomes are below those of pupils with similar starting points nationally. The EBacc average point score is 3.84, compared with an England figure of 4.08.

A-level performance is more challenging in relative terms. Ranked 2,120th in England and 1st in Exmouth for A-level outcomes (FindMySchool ranking, based on official data), it sits below England average overall. The proportion of A-level grades at A* is 2.42%, at A is 7.73%, and at A* to B combined is 30.43%. England’s average A* to B figure is 47.2%.

These numbers point to an important practical implication: for academically ambitious students, strong study habits and careful subject fit matter, and the sixth form’s support structures become central to the experience rather than a “nice to have”.

The curriculum story, based on the latest inspection evidence, is mixed but directionally clear. A broad curriculum is in place, and recent work, particularly in Key Stage 3, has focused on ensuring learning is properly sequenced. The inspection report also notes regular recall and revisiting as an intended feature of classroom practice, which is consistent with a school trying to build stronger learning habits across a large cohort.

Where the school still has work to do is consistency of implementation. In some subjects, a lack of expertise in delivering the planned curriculum means teachers do not always check understanding well enough, and students do not retain learning as securely as intended. In a setting of this size, that gap between “curriculum plan” and “classroom experience” can create unequal experience between subject areas and year groups.

Support for students with special educational needs and disabilities is a key thread. The inspection report highlights that teachers provide models and structures that help, but adaptations are not applied precisely enough in all subjects, which can delay the right support for some students. Families for whom SEN support is a deciding factor should pay close attention to how targets, strategies, and classroom adjustments are communicated and consistently applied.

Where Students Go Next

The school does not consistently publish a single, current “headline destinations” set with precise counts for Russell Group or Oxbridge, so the best available, standardised picture here is the official 16 to 18 destination data. For the 2023 to 2024 leavers cohort (154 students), 26% progressed to university, 6% to apprenticeships, 45% to employment, and 2% to further education.

That distribution suggests a sixth form where routes beyond school are varied, with a substantial proportion moving straight into work. For many families, that is a positive feature when paired with strong guidance, because it signals that the school is not trying to force a single “university only” model of success. The inspection report supports that practical framing by referencing a careers programme that includes career-focused weeks, preparation for student finance and budgeting, and work experience placements including health, ecological sites and law firms.

Year 7 entry is coordinated through Devon County Council. For September 2026 entry, the published closing date for applications is 31 October 2025. The school also publishes an appeals timetable for the normal round. For Year 7 intake, the allocation date is listed as 02 March 2026, with an appeal form deadline of 20 April 2026, and appeals heard within 40 school days, by 23 June 2026.

For sixth form, applications are managed directly and the school highlights an “equal access” deadline of 14 January 2026, before courses are timetabled, with applications remaining open until 01 September 2026. The practical implication is straightforward: students who care about keeping options open for a particular subject combination should treat mid-January as the meaningful deadline, even though the application window is longer.

Parents who are comparing options should use the FindMySchool Map Search to understand travel time and day-to-day feasibility, particularly in a large school where movement across site is part of normal routines.

Pastoral care has several concrete “access points”, which is often what families look for in a large secondary. The inspection report notes multiple routes for students to report concerns, including the online worry button. The same report describes a personal development programme that includes a weekly “Lesson 42” focused on relationships and wellbeing, alongside wider personal, social and health education.

Haven adds a further layer for Key Stage 3 students, particularly those who find unstructured times difficult. A Lunchtime Hub as a safe space, plus 1:1 mentoring and a Year 7 twilight group, are specific interventions that can make a material difference to attendance, confidence, and behaviour for a subset of pupils.

A school of this scale can offer breadth, but participation is what matters. The inspection report indicates that the school is actively trying to increase take-up, and gives examples across sport, music, performance groups, and the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.

Some of the most distinctive opportunities are place-based and practical. Ten Tors training, for example, appears as an organised programme with published training walks and routes, which tends to suit students who like long-term challenge and teamwork. In school, the library is used as more than a quiet room, it runs a Book Club and a Board Games Club, and lists recent author visits including Jaqueline Wilson, David Baddiel, Patrice Lawrence and others.

Music is supported through peripatetic tuition across instruments including guitar, ukulele, flute, saxophone, piano, voice and violin, with applications referenced for the 2025 to 2026 academic year. For students who thrive with structured practice and performance opportunities, this can be a stabilising thread through the week, particularly in a busy, large setting.

Students are expected to be on site by 08:20, and to register by 08:30. The school publishes term dates and indicates that the regular finish time is 15:00.

The website does not present a single, public “wraparound care” model in the way a primary might. For a secondary school, after-school support is instead framed through homework and study sessions. For example, homework support for Year 7 is listed on two afternoons each week, and for Years 8 and 9 on two afternoons, with sessions running shortly after the end of the school day.

• Requires improvement overall. The February 2024 inspection outcome was requires improvement, with particular focus on consistency of curriculum delivery and behaviour at social times. For families, the key question is how quickly improvements are becoming the everyday norm across all subjects and year groups.

• A very large, split-site setting. Movement between lessons is part of the routine. This suits students who like independence and can manage transitions calmly; it can be harder for those who find busy social times overstimulating, although targeted support such as Haven exists for some pupils.

• Sixth form outcomes are mixed. A-level attainment and England ranking indicate that students aiming for highly competitive courses may need to be proactive about study routines, subject choice, and using support early.

• SEN consistency is a live issue. Support strategies exist, but precision and consistency across subjects were identified as an area that still needs tightening, which is particularly relevant for families who rely on predictable classroom adjustments.

Exmouth Community College is a large, mixed comprehensive with a sixth form, a broad curriculum, and a genuine attempt to make enrichment and wellbeing visible parts of school life. The latest inspection confirms effective safeguarding and stronger elements in personal development and leadership, while also underlining that consistency of curriculum delivery, SEN adaptation, and behaviour culture still require improvement.

Who it suits: families who want a local, large-scale school with breadth, structured routines, and multiple pathways post-16, and who are comfortable engaging actively with the school’s improvement journey, particularly around learning consistency and behaviour norms.