Mount Tamar School
Mount Tamar School is a sponsored special academy in Plymouth for boys and girls aged 4 to 16. Ofsted visited in January 2026 and gave it a report card, which is below.
Row Lane, Plymouth, PL5 2EFMark Ruffett headteacherAll details
What Ofsted found
Ofsted visited on 20 January 2026. Instead of one overall word, it now gives a grade for each part of school life. Read the full report on Ofsted's website.
Ofsted says these new grades can't be lined up against the old one-word grades.
Ofsted has serious worries about this school. It is in special measures.
Earlier inspections (1)
| Date | Type | Outcome | Inspected as |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 January 2026 | Academy First Section 5 | – | Mount Tamar School (predecessor) |
† These inspections are for Mount Tamar School, the school this one replaced in May 2026. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.
Results
GCSE results, summer 2025
12 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England. These are the results of Mount Tamar School, the school this one replaced.
All GCSE measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025† | 2024† | Plymouth | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of Year 11 | 12 | 19 | – | – |
| Average GCSE scoreAttainment 8 | 3.5 | 5.1 | 47.0 | 46.8 |
| Progress from age 11Progress 8 | – | -2.15 | – | – |
| Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths | 0% | 0% | 47% | 46% |
| Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths | 0% | 0% | 68% | 66% |
| Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score | 0.25 | 0.26 | 4.04 | 4.15 |
| Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry | 0% | 0% | 28% | 41% |
| Average GCSE score: low-income pupilsAttainment 8, disadvantaged | 3.5 | 4.0 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: other pupilsAttainment 8, non-disadvantaged | – | 6.1 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers | – | 3.9 | – | – |
† These results are for Mount Tamar School, the school this one replaced in May 2026. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.
Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025
4 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England. With a year group this small, a couple of children can move the percentages a long way. These are the results of Mount Tamar School, the school this one replaced.
All Year 6 measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025† | 2024† | Plymouth | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils tested | 4 | 12 | – | – |
| Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths | – | 0% | 65% | 63% |
| Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths | – | 0% | 8% | 8% |
| Reading scoreReading average scaled score | – | 94.0 | 105.1 | 105.6 |
| Maths scoreMaths average scaled score | – | 86.0 | 104.3 | 104.6 |
| Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score | – | 94.0 | 104.5 | 105.2 |
| Expected level: readingReading expected standard | – | 8% | – | – |
| Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard | – | 0% | – | – |
| Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed) | – | 0% | – | – |
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 Mount Tamar School, the school this one replaced in May 2026. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.
Getting a place
Admissions policy not published.
Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Plymouth council's admissions booklet, send it to us.
Who goes here
Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.
Attendance and behaviour
In 2024/25 pupils were in school 71.4% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.
Attendance year by year
| Measure | 2024/25† | 2023/24† | 2022/23† | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sessions missedOverall absence | 28.6% | 23.1% | 23.2% | 5.2% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 14.5% | 9.9% | 8.8% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 14.1% | 13.2% | 14.4% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 68.5% | 67.0% | 53.2% | 12.8% |
† These attendance figures are for Mount Tamar School, the school this one replaced in May 2026. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.
The area around the school
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 schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.
| School | Type | Distance | Pupils | Ofsted | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marine Academy Primary | Free school | 250 m | 506 | Outstanding 2022 | 99 | Compare |
| Plaistow Hill Primary and Nursery School | Academy | 270 m | 165 | Good 2022 | 34 | Compare |
| Marine Academy Plymouth | Academy | 330 m | 989 | Good 2024 | 28 | Compare |
| St Budeaux CofE Primary Academy | Academy | 370 m | 55 | Not inspected | 7 | Compare |
| Victoria Road Primary | Academy | 630 m | 172 | No overall grade 2025 | 10 | Compare |
| St Paul's Roman Catholic Primary School | Academy | 780 m | 136 | Good 2022 | 14 | Compare |
| Ernesettle Community School | Academy | 0.7 miles | 587 | Outstanding 2019 | 89 | Compare |
| Weston Mill Community Primary Academy | Academy | 0.8 miles | 184 | No overall grade 2024 | 2 | Compare |
Questions parents ask
Is Mount Tamar School a good school?
Mount Tamar School doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted's report card from January 2026 rated its teaching as urgent improvement.
What is Mount Tamar School's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted no longer gives schools one overall grade. When it visited on 20 January 2026 it rated teaching as urgent improvement, achievement as urgent improvement, behaviour and attendance as urgent improvement, leadership as urgent improvement, and found that pupils were not being kept safe enough.
How good are Mount Tamar School's GCSE results?
In summer 2025, 0% of pupils got a grade 5 or better in both English and maths. Across England it was 46%. Its Attainment 8 score, which is the average grade across a pupil's best eight subjects times ten, was 3.5, against 46.8 for England. In each subject, pupils here finished well over a grade behind children across England who started secondary school at the same level.
How many pupils does Mount Tamar School have?
The number of pupils is not published.
What is attendance like at Mount Tamar School?
Pupils were in school 71.4% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 69% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
Does Mount Tamar School 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
- Row Lane, Plymouth, PL5 2EF
- Headteacher
- Mark Ruffett
- 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
- Sponsored special academy (Academy special sponsor led, academies)
- Phase
- Special school, ages 4-16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Multi-academy trust
- Reach South Academy Trust (20 schools)
- Local authority
- Plymouth
- Ward
- St Budeaux
- Constituency
- Plymouth Moor View
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 1 May 2026 (fresh start)
- URN
- 152544 · LAESTAB 8797001 · UKPRN 10100813
- Formerly
- Mount Tamar School
Where these figures come from
- School details: Department for Education, Get Information About Schools, refreshed daily (this page rebuilt 13 September 2026).
- Inspections: Ofsted management information, monthly; latest publication in our data 27 August 2026.
- GCSE results: DfE key stage 4 performance tables, 2024/25 final.
- Year 6 results: DfE key stage 2 tables, 2024/25.
- Attendance: DfE pupil absence in schools in England, 2024/25 full year.
- Pupil premium: DfE allocations and conditions of grant, 2026 to 2027.
- Breakfast club: DfE list of schools on the free breakfast club programme.
- Neighbourhood: police.uk street-level crime, HM Land Registry price paid data, NaPTAN bus stops, English Indices of Deprivation 2025.
- All under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Full list and update calendar.