ACE Tiverton Special School
Orchard Way, Tiverton, EX16 5HB
- Phase
- Free Schools
- School type
- Free schools special
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- REACH SOUTH ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Hannah Smart
- Sponsor
- Reach South Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Tiverton and Minehead
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 115
- Pupils on roll
- 117
- URN
- 147064
- Local authority
- Devon
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01884763140
About this school
ACE Tiverton Special School is a special academy in Tiverton. It teaches children aged 11 to 16 and has 117 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected ACE Tiverton Special 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
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
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 10 | 18 | 28 |
| Attainment 8 score | 4.1 | 4.1 | 7.4 |
| Progress 8 score | -2.93 -3.85 to -2.01 | -2.89 -3.56 to -2.22 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 10% | 0% | 0% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 10% | 0% | 25% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.5 |
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 ACE Tiverton Special 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 | 4.1 | 36.5 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 4.1 | 36.1 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 7.4 | 33.6 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 15.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 16.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 14.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 83 |
| 2023/24 | 108 |
| 2024/25 | 115 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 41.74%
- English as an additional language
- 0%
- Overall absence
- 14.48%
- Persistent absence
- 33.62%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Blundell's School1.3 miles
Independent schools · Tiverton
-
Blundell's Preparatory School1.7 miles
Independent schools · Tiverton
-
K-HQ7.7 miles
Special schools · Devon
-
The Wildings11.1 miles
Special schools
-
Heathcoat Primary School0.1 miles
Primary · Tiverton
Other schools in Tiverton
- Bampton Church of England Primary School Primary
- Bickleigh on Exe Church of England Primary School Primary
- Bolham Community Primary School Primary
- Burlescombe Church of England Primary School Primary
- Castle Primary School Primary
- East Anstey Primary School Primary
- Halberton Primary School Primary
- Heathcoat Primary School Primary
- Rackenford Church of England Primary School Primary
- Sampford Peverell Church of England Primary School Primary
- St John's Catholic Primary School Primary
- Tidcombe Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does ACE Tiverton Special School teach?
- ACE Tiverton Special School teaches children aged 11 to 16. It is a special school in Tiverton.
- Who is the headteacher of ACE Tiverton Special School?
- The headteacher of ACE Tiverton Special School is Mrs Hannah Smart, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has ACE Tiverton Special School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected ACE Tiverton Special 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 ACE Tiverton Special School?
- ACE Tiverton Special School has 117 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 16.
- Is ACE Tiverton Special School full?
- ACE Tiverton Special School has capacity for 115 pupils and 117 on roll (102%), 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 ACE Tiverton Special School a faith school?
- No. ACE Tiverton Special School has no designated religious character.
- Is ACE Tiverton Special School part of an academy trust?
- ACE Tiverton Special School is part of REACH SOUTH ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have ACE Tiverton Special School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 4.1 in 2022/23 and 7.4 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- What is ACE Tiverton Special School's absence rate?
- ACE Tiverton Special School's overall absence rate is 14.5% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are ACE Tiverton Special School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, ACE Tiverton Special 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 10 July 2026.