Sherford Vale School & Nursery
Hercules Road, Sherford, PL9 8FA
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Free schools
- Ages
- 2 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- WESTCOUNTRY SCHOOLS TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Laurie Archer
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Westcountry Schools Trust
- Constituency
- South West Devon
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 420
- Pupils on roll
- 347
- URN
- 145907
- Local authority
- Devon
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01752891795
About this school
Sherford Vale School & Nursery is a primary academy in Sherford. It teaches children aged 2 to 11 and has 347 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Sherford Vale School & Nursery, 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
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- 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 | 27 | 27 | 27 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 63% | 63% | 59% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 15% | 11% | 4% |
| Expected standard in reading | 74% | 93% | 78% |
| Expected standard in maths | 70% | 85% | 78% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 70% | 81% | 67% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 107.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 105.0 | 106.0 | 104.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.50 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | 0.00 | - | - |
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 Sherford Vale School & Nursery 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 | 63% | 55% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 63% | 54.9% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 59% | 57.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.9% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 254 |
| 2023/24 | 258 |
| 2024/25 | 310 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Sherford Vale School & Nursery compares
Sherford Vale School & Nursery ranked 152nd of 269 primary schools in Devon for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 38% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 47% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 59% | 5.6% | 30.8% | 347 | — |
| Elburton Primary School | 77% | 3.7% | 5.5% | 470 | 0.6 miles |
| Plympton St Maurice Primary School | 56% | 4.4% | 18.3% | 179 | 1.1 miles |
| St Mary's Church of England Primary School | 100% | 3.5% | 20.4% | 100 | 1.3 miles |
| Goosewell Primary Academy | 71% | 5.1% | 16.1% | 394 | 1.4 miles |
| Yealmpstone Farm Primary School | 67% | 4.8% | 18.8% | 227 | 1.5 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)
- 30.83%
- English as an additional language
- 4.2%
- Overall absence
- 5.56%
- Persistent absence
- 14.1%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Elburton Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Plymouth
-
Plympton St Maurice Primary School1.1 miles
Primary · Plymouth
-
St Mary's Church of England Primary School1.3 miles
Primary · Plymouth
-
Goosewell Primary Academy1.4 miles
Primary · Plymouth
-
Yealmpstone Farm Primary School1.5 miles
Primary · Plymouth
Common questions
- What ages does Sherford Vale School & Nursery teach?
- Sherford Vale School & Nursery teaches children aged 2 to 11. It is a primary school in Sherford.
- Who is the headteacher of Sherford Vale School & Nursery?
- The headteacher of Sherford Vale School & Nursery is Mrs Laurie Archer, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Sherford Vale School & Nursery been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Sherford Vale School & Nursery, 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 Sherford Vale School & Nursery?
- Sherford Vale School & Nursery has 347 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 11.
- Is Sherford Vale School & Nursery full?
- Sherford Vale School & Nursery has capacity for 420 pupils and 347 on roll (83%), so it has space against 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 Sherford Vale School & Nursery a faith school?
- No. Sherford Vale School & Nursery has no designated religious character.
- Does Sherford Vale School & Nursery have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Sherford Vale School & Nursery as having nursery classes.
- Is Sherford Vale School & Nursery part of an academy trust?
- Sherford Vale School & Nursery is part of WESTCOUNTRY SCHOOLS TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Sherford Vale School & Nursery's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 63% in 2022/23 and 59% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Sherford Vale School & Nursery compare with other schools in Devon?
- Sherford Vale School & Nursery ranked 152nd of 269 primary schools in Devon for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 38% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 47% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Sherford Vale School & Nursery's absence rate?
- Sherford Vale School & Nursery's overall absence rate is 5.6% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Sherford Vale School & Nursery's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Sherford Vale School & Nursery'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 10 July 2026.