Barley Lane School
Barley Lane, St Thomas, Exeter, EX4 1TA
- Phase
- Special schools
- School type
- Foundation special school
- Ages
- 7 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- SENtient Trust
- Headteacher
- Mr David Jones
- SEN provision
- SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health
- Constituency
- Exeter
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 79
- Pupils on roll
- 80
- URN
- 113636
- Local authority
- Devon
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01392430774
About this school
Barley Lane School is a foundation special school in Exeter. It teaches children aged 7 to 16 and has 80 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person 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
- Requires improvement
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Requires improvement
- 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 | 10 | 6 | 7 |
| 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 | 30% | 33% | 29% |
| Expected standard in maths | 0% | 0% | 14% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 0% | 17% | 29% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 98.0 | 101.0 | 96.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 90.0 | 94.0 | 91.0 |
| Reading progress | +0.10 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -2.60 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -5.60 | - | - |
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 | 11 | 13 | 13 |
| Attainment 8 score | 5.4 | 7.6 | 5.4 |
| Progress 8 score | -1.70 -2.63 to -0.78 | -2.04 -2.92 to -1.16 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 0% | 7.7% | 0% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.3 |
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 Barley Lane 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 | Devon average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.4 | 36.5 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 7.6 | 36.1 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 5.4 | 33.6 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 13.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 15% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 13.3% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 80 |
| 2023/24 | 79 |
| 2024/25 | 76 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
Inspection history
- 9 July 2024
-
Ungraded inspection report17 May 2023
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 64.47%
- English as an additional language
- 1.3%
- Overall absence
- 13.34%
- Persistent absence
- 34.57%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Torlands Academy0.5 miles
Academies · Exeter
-
Belong School Devon0.8 miles
Special schools · Exeter
-
Exeter Cathedral School1.4 miles
Independent schools · Exeter
-
The Maynard School1.8 miles
Independent schools · Exeter
-
University of Exeter1.8 miles
Universities · Exeter
Other schools in Exeter
- Atkinson Secure Children's Home Other types
- Belong School Devon Special schools
- Devon Hospitals' Short Stay School Local authority maintained schools
- Ellen Tinkham School Special 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 year groups does Barley Lane School teach?
- Barley Lane School teaches children aged 7 to 16. It is a special school in Exeter.
- Who is the headteacher of Barley Lane School?
- The headteacher of Barley Lane School is Mr David Jones, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Barley Lane School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Barley Lane 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 big is Barley Lane School?
- Barley Lane School has 80 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 7 to 16.
- Is Barley Lane School full?
- Barley Lane School has capacity for 79 pupils and 80 on roll (101%), 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 Barley Lane School a faith school?
- No. Barley Lane School has no designated religious character.
- Who runs Barley Lane School?
- Barley Lane 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 Barley Lane School have?
- The schools register lists Barley Lane School's special educational needs provision as: SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Barley Lane 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 Barley Lane School's absence rate?
- Barley Lane School's overall absence rate is 13.3% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Barley Lane School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Barley Lane 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.