School Chooser

Lifton Community Academy

Primary · ages 2-11MixedAcademy131 pupilsNursery Free breakfast clubDevon
School Chooser Score
16
Below
similar schools
Likely range 6 to 45, so it could be “well below”
Out of 100. Better than 14% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
Reached the expected level at 1152%England 63%
Attendance93.9%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families19%A bit fewer than most schools
Places44 spare131 pupils, 175 places
Pupils per teacher19.2School workforce census
Pupils on roll131Census January 2026

Lifton Community Academy is a converter academy in Lifton for boys and girls aged 2 to 11. It has 131 pupils and room for 175. About 18 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, a bit fewer than at most schools. We give it 16 out of 100. That puts it below schools like it, ahead of 14% of the 50 schools most like it.

North Road, Lifton, PL16 0EH01566 232071lifton-lap.co.ukMr Adam Hill headteacherAll details

Ofsted

Ofsted hasn't published an inspection for this school yet.

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

21 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England.

Reached the expected level at 1152%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level10%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score103.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score101.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 33%33%20172018: 57%57%20182019: 45%45%20192023: 71%71%20232024: 42%42%20242025: 52%52%2025
Since 2017: +19%Declining overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure2025202420232019†2018†2017†DevonEngland
Pupils tested212617201415
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths52%42%71%45%57%33%60%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths10%4%0%5%7%0%7%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score103.0103.0106.0101.0106.0101.0105.8105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score101.0102.0103.0100.0103.0100.0104.0104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score102.0100.0104.0104.0106.0104.0104.1105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard62%62%82%55%71%47%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard62%54%76%65%64%40%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)71%81%82%80%79%73%
Reading progressReading progress score-0.1-2.7-0.2-2.4
Maths progressMaths progress score-1.6-3.9-1.6-4.0
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged29%56%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged47%88%

There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.

† These results are for Lifton Community Primary School, the school this one replaced in April 2022. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Does every child do well here?

A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. None of the gaps is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.

At the end of primary school, 2025

Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
36%70%
Gap 34 ptsEngland 5 pts
First groupSecond groupEngland, each group

Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Plenty of spare places107 pupils for 175 places, 2024/25
61% full

68 places were empty (39% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have fallen by 21% since 2021/22, so places are getting easier to find.

Will my child get a place?

In 2026 every child who applied got a place, so how far away you live didn't matter. That could change if the school gets more popular.

We measure in a straight line from the middle of your postcode to the school. The council measures its own way, and the cut-off changes every year. Use this as a rough guide, and read the council's admissions booklet before you apply.

How places were given out for September 2026. Every child who applied got a place (14 offers for 25 places).

EntryPlacesGot a placeHow far the last child livedSource
2026 Primary2514all offeredLA
2025 Primary2517all offeredLA
2024 Primary25all offeredLA
2023 Primary25all offeredLA
2022 Primary25all offeredLA

Who goes here

Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.

Pupils on roll131Census January 2026
Places17575% full
Pupils from low-income families19%19% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English0%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support15%19 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan2%3 pupils with a plan
Average class size20.06 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils0%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)19%£34,100 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls55 / 76
White British pupils85%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 23.5 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 21.0 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (10), SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need (4), Autistic spectrum disorder (3), Moderate learning difficulty (2), emotional and mental health (2), Specific learning difficulty (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census2026202520242023
Pupils on roll131146179177
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals19%17%15%17%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language0%0%0%0%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support15%16%18%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans3%1%2%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 93.9% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance93.9%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school21.2%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils8.22024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.4%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/22†2020/21†2018/19†England
Sessions missedOverall absence6.1%5.0%6.2%6.4%3.0%3.4%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence4.7%3.9%4.8%5.7%2.7%2.6%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.4%1.1%1.4%0.7%0.2%0.8%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence21.2%14.4%17.8%19.9%8.1%1.9%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate8.23.90.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions010

† These attendance figures are for Lifton Community Primary School, the school this one replaced in April 2022. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers6.8full-time equivalent, 8 people
Pupils per teacher19.2Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants6.4full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£47,758
Teachers who left in the year67%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher13.82024/25

Money

From the academy accounts return, year to August 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£6,870England £7,128. Total £1.0m
Income per pupil£6,822England £7,587. Total £996k
Spent on teachers per pupil£2,781England £3,405
Money in reserve7%Not much put by: £71k, £485 per pupil. England 9%
Money in against money out-£7,000it spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£6,870spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m4212 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate29 per 1,000 people68% lower than the England average
Typical house price£294,496West Devon
Nearest bus stop150 mArundell Arms Hotel, 2 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest primary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Launceston Primary SchoolFree school3.3 miles101Good 202492Compare
Windmill Hill AcademyAcademy3.5 miles162Good 202219Compare
St Giles-on-the-Heath Community SchoolCouncil3.8 miles100Good 202333Compare
St Stephens Community AcademyAcademy3.9 miles199Good 202426Compare
Milton Abbot Primary SchoolAcademy4.1 miles82Good 202283Compare
St Catherine's CofE Primary SchoolAcademy4.2 miles222Not inspected69Compare
Lew Trenchard Church of England Primary SchoolAcademy4.4 miles78Good 202310Compare
Werrington Community Primary SchoolAcademy4.6 miles62Good 20231Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Lifton Community Academy with the 44 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 44 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats14%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the bottom quarter of its group. Its score of 16 is 27 points below the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 1 · middle 43 · highest 97100

Nearby schools with a similar mix of pupils that score higher

Of those 44 schools, these are within 25 km and score at least five points more than Lifton Community Academy, nearest first. A school with the same kind of pupils and a higher score is the fairest sign that it gets more out of them.

SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Menheniot Primary SchoolFoundation15.3 miles138Good 202461Compare

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 16 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 16% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 6 to 45. That range is wide enough that the school could sit in the next band, so take the band as a rough guide rather than a verdict. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.

What we looked atHow much it countsAgainst schools like itEffect on the scoreBased on
Results over three years25%below
-0.12
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 21 pupils
Ofsted inspection0%no data
Progress pupils make20%in line
-0.08
DfE progress measure; 21 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%below
-0.09
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%below
-0.09
2024/25; 118 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%below
-0.11
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 21 pupils
What parents say0%no data

Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.

Questions parents ask

Is Lifton Community Academy a good school?

The figures are weak. Lifton Community Academy scores 16 out of 100. That is below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 14% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 6 to 45, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.

How good are Lifton Community Academy's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 52% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 10% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does Lifton Community Academy have?

131 pupils aged 2 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 175 places, so it is 75% full.

Is Lifton Community Academy oversubscribed?

Probably not. 68 places were empty in 2024/25 (39% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at Lifton Community Academy?

Pupils were in school 93.9% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 21% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Lifton Community Academy?

The average class had 20.0 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. No class had more than 30 pupils.

Does Lifton Community Academy have a breakfast club?

Yes. It is on the government's free breakfast club programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
North Road, Lifton, PL16 0EH
Telephone
01566 232071
Website
lifton-lap.co.uk
Headteacher
Mr Adam Hill
Free breakfast club
Yes: on the government's programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school (listed since September 2026).
Type of school
Converter academy (Academy converter, academies)
Phase
Primary school, ages 2-11, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Multi-academy trust
Learning Academy Partnership (South West) (18 schools)
Local authority
Devon
Ward
Tamarside
Constituency
Torridge and Tavistock
Setting
Smaller rural: Further from a major town or city
Opened
1 April 2022 (academy converter)
URN
148987 · LAESTAB 8782612 · UKPRN 10090168
Formerly
Lifton Community Primary School

Where these figures come from