West Down School
West Down, Ilfracombe, EX34 8NF
This school is closed (it closed in March 2025).
It was replaced by West Down School. That page has the school's current information.
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 2 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Mrs Su Carey
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- North Devon
- Setting
- (England/Wales) Rural village
- Capacity
- 105
- Pupils on roll
- 99
- URN
- 113172
- Local authority
- Devon
About this school
West Down School was a community primary school in Ilfracombe. It taught children aged 2 to 11 and had 99 pupils on roll.
Ofsted did not inspect it under the current framework.
Ofsted judgement
West Down School has not been inspected by Ofsted yet.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 13 | 12 | 12 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 69% | 50% | 42% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 15% | 0% | 17% |
| Expected standard in reading | 85% | 92% | 83% |
| Expected standard in maths | 85% | 75% | 83% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 77% | 67% | 83% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 107.0 | 107.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 107.0 | 104.0 | 108.0 |
| Reading progress | +1.00 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.90 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +3.00 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How West Down School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Devon average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 69% | 55% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 50% | 54.9% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 42% | 57.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 115 |
| 2023/24 | 102 |
| 2024/25 | 99 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How West Down School compares
Its KS2 result was higher than 13% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 40% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 42% | 5.9% | 18.2% | 99 | — |
| West Down School | — | — | — | 95 | 0.0 miles |
| Marwood School | — | — | — | 72 | 3.1 miles |
| Ilfracombe Infant and Nursery School | — | 7.3% | 27.8% | 207 | 3.2 miles |
| Ilfracombe Church of England Junior School | 37% | 5.7% | 33.4% | 326 | 3.3 miles |
| Woolacombe School | 70% | 7% | 12.5% | 216 | 3.4 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 18.18%
- English as an additional language
- 0%
- Overall absence
- 5.9%
- Persistent absence
- 13.51%
Location
Nearby schools
-
West Down School0.0 miles
Primary · Ilfracombe
-
Marwood School3.1 miles
Primary · Barnstaple
-
Ilfracombe Infant and Nursery School3.2 miles
Primary · Ilfracombe
-
Ilfracombe Church of England Junior School3.3 miles
Primary · Ilfracombe
-
Woolacombe School3.4 miles
Primary · Woolacombe
Other schools in Ilfracombe
- Berrynarbor Church of England Primary School Primary
- Combe Martin Primary School Primary
- Ilfracombe Church of England Junior School Primary
- Ilfracombe Infant and Nursery School Primary
- West Down School Primary
- The Ilfracombe Church of England Academy Secondary
Common questions
- What year groups does West Down School teach?
- West Down School taught children aged 2 to 11. It was a primary school in Ilfracombe.
- Has West Down School been inspected?
- Ofsted has not inspected West Down School under its current framework, so no current judgement is shown. That is common for newer schools and is not a mark against a school.
- How big is West Down School?
- West Down School had 99 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 11.
- How have West Down School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 69% in 2022/23 and 42% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- What are West Down School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, West Down School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 8 July 2025.