Combe Pafford School
Steps Lane, Watcombe, Torquay, TQ2 8NL
- Phase
- Academies
- School type
- Academy special converter
- Ages
- 8 to 19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- COMBE PAFFORD SCHOOL
- Headteacher
- Mrs Sally Banfield
- Religious ethos
- None
- SEN provision
- MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty
- Constituency
- Torbay
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 244
- Pupils on roll
- 239
- URN
- 139540
- Local authority
- Torbay
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01803327902
About this school
Combe Pafford School is a special academy in Torquay. It teaches children aged 8 to 19 and has 239 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Combe Pafford School, and its latest judgement is set out 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 17 April 2024, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
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 | 9 | 17 |
| 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 | -11.10 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -9.60 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -11.50 | - | - |
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 | 30 | 40 | 39 |
| Attainment 8 score | 3.0 | 4.7 | 5.6 |
| Progress 8 score | -1.35 -1.88 to -0.81 | -1.38 -1.84 to -0.93 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 0% | 0% | 2.6% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 0% | 5% | 5.1% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
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 Combe Pafford 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 | Torbay average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 0% | 57% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 0% | 57.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 0% | 57.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | Torbay average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 3 | 41.2 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 4.7 | 36.9 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 5.6 | 38.2 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.8% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 9.3% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 9.8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 268 |
| 2023/24 | 258 |
| 2024/25 | 257 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 60.2%
- English as an additional language
- 1.2%
- Overall absence
- 9.78%
- Persistent absence
- 28.99%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Mayfield School0.1 miles
Special schools · Torquay
-
The Lodestar Academy0.8 miles
Academies · Torquay
-
Abbey School0.9 miles
Independent schools · Torquay
-
Eat That Frog C.I.C1.9 miles
Other types · Torquay
-
Glendinning Academy3.6 miles
Free Schools · Newton Abbot
Other schools in Torquay
- Eat That Frog C.I.C Other types
- Mayfield School Special schools
- Phoenix Bay School Special schools
- The Lodestar Academy Academies
- All Saints Babbacombe CofE Primary School Primary
- Cockington Primary School Primary
- Ellacombe Church of England Academy Primary
- Homelands Primary School Primary
- Ilsham Church of England Academy Primary
- Lift Barton Hill Primary
- Our Lady of the Angels Catholic Primary School Primary
- Preston Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Combe Pafford School teach?
- Combe Pafford School teaches children aged 8 to 19. It is a special school in Torquay.
- Who is the headteacher of Combe Pafford School?
- The headteacher of Combe Pafford School is Mrs Sally Banfield, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Combe Pafford School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Combe Pafford 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 Combe Pafford School?
- Combe Pafford School has 239 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 8 to 19.
- Is Combe Pafford School full?
- Combe Pafford School has capacity for 244 pupils and 239 on roll (98%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Combe Pafford School a faith school?
- No. Combe Pafford School has no designated religious character.
- Is Combe Pafford School part of an academy trust?
- Combe Pafford School is part of COMBE PAFFORD SCHOOL. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does Combe Pafford School have?
- The schools register lists Combe Pafford School's special educational needs provision as: MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Combe Pafford 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 Combe Pafford School's absence rate?
- Combe Pafford School's overall absence rate is 9.8% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Combe Pafford School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Combe Pafford 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 1 July 2026.