Ellen Tinkham School
Hollow Lane, Pinhoe, Exeter, EX1 3RW
- Phase
- Special schools
- School type
- Foundation special school
- Ages
- 3 to 19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- SENtient Trust
- Headteacher
- Mrs Nikki Burroughs
- Federation
- Learn to Live Federation
- SEN provision
- SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty, PMLD - Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty
- Constituency
- Exmouth and Exeter East
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 220
- Pupils on roll
- 240
- URN
- 113633
- Local authority
- Devon
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01392467168
About this school
Ellen Tinkham School is a foundation special school in Exeter. It teaches children aged 3 to 19 and has 240 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Ellen Tinkham School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Outstanding
- Sixth form
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 17 | 28 | 22 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Average scaled score in reading | - | - | - |
| Average scaled score in maths | - | - | - |
| Reading progress | -9.60 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -8.30 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -7.60 | - | - |
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.
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 9 | 19 | 14 |
| Attainment 8 score | - | - | - |
| Progress 8 score | - | - | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | - | - | - |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | - | - | - |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | - | - | - |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | - | - | - |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Ellen Tinkham 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 | 0% | 55% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 0% | 54.9% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 0% | 57.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 10.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 8.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 238 |
| 2023/24 | 237 |
| 2024/25 | 236 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
Inspection history
- 19 April 2023
-
Ungraded inspection report11 March 2020
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 48.57%
- English as an additional language
- 6.4%
- Overall absence
- 8.35%
- Persistent absence
- 25.25%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Vranch House School0.9 miles
Special schools · Exeter
-
Stansfield Academy1.0 miles
Academies · Exeter
-
Devon Hospitals' Short Stay School1.8 miles
Local authority maintained schools · Exeter
-
Exeter School1.9 miles
Independent schools · Exeter
-
Southbrook School2.0 miles
Special schools · Exeter
Other schools in Exeter
- Atkinson Secure Children's Home Other types
- Barley Lane School Special schools
- Belong School Devon Special schools
- Devon Hospitals' Short Stay School Local authority maintained schools
- Infocus College Other types
- Magdalen Court School Special schools
- Southbrook School Special schools
- Stansfield Academy Academies
- The Outdoors School Special schools
- Torlands Academy Academies
- Vranch House School Special schools
- Chestnut Nursery School - Exeter Nursery Schools Federation Nursery
Common questions
- What ages does Ellen Tinkham School teach?
- Ellen Tinkham School teaches children aged 3 to 19. It is a special school in Exeter.
- Who is the headteacher of Ellen Tinkham School?
- The headteacher of Ellen Tinkham School is Mrs Nikki Burroughs, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Ellen Tinkham School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Ellen Tinkham School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Ellen Tinkham School?
- Ellen Tinkham School has 240 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 19.
- Is Ellen Tinkham School full?
- Ellen Tinkham School has capacity for 220 pupils and 240 on roll (109%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Ellen Tinkham School a faith school?
- No. Ellen Tinkham School has no designated religious character.
- Is Ellen Tinkham School part of an academy trust?
- Ellen Tinkham School is part of SENtient Trust. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does Ellen Tinkham School have?
- The schools register lists Ellen Tinkham School's special educational needs provision as: SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty; PMLD - Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Ellen Tinkham School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 0% in 2022/23 and 0% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- What is Ellen Tinkham School's absence rate?
- Ellen Tinkham School's overall absence rate is 8.4% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Ellen Tinkham School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Ellen Tinkham 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 29 June 2026.