Schools in Barnstaple
Barnstaple's 30 schools are administered by Devon County Council, with 24 primaries and 2 secondaries serving a North Devon market town that functions as the main education hub for a wide rural catchment stretching to Ilfracombe, Bideford and Exmoor fringes. Devon uses straight-line distance after sibling priority as the standard oversubscription criterion for community schools, though rural transport links and catchment-school designation add complexity for families in outlying villages.
Secondary provision in Barnstaple is dominated by Pilton Community College and Park Community School, which together serve a large geographic intake area that includes village schools from Bishops Tawton to Goodleigh. Devon's admissions allocation maps can differ substantially from school-published catchment boundaries, so families relying solely on a school's own information risk surprises at offer stage - using postcode-level mapping to check actual offer distances is strongly advised.
School demand in Barnstaple
Across the 28 schools in Barnstaple with published capacity data, the average fill rate is 83%. 5 of them are currently at or above their published admission number, and at those schools catchment distance is likely to decide places at the next intake.
8 schools in Barnstaple have a religious character, so faith criteria sit alongside catchment distance in their admissions policies.
20 of the schools in Barnstaple are academies that set their own admissions criteria independently of Devon, so check each school's policy directly rather than assuming the council default applies.
13 of the schools in Barnstaple have a current Ofsted rating, of which 11 are rated Good or Outstanding. Demand and catchment distance tend to be tightest at the highest-rated schools.
Primary schools in Barnstaple: 4 oversubscribed (24)
Bishops Tawton Primary School
Primary · Foundation school
Barnstaple · EX32 0AE
Filleigh Community Primary School
Primary · Foundation school
Barnstaple · EX32 0RS
Kentisbury Primary School
Primary · Community school
Barnstaple · EX31 4NG
Goodleigh Church of England Primary School
Primary · Voluntary controlled school
Barnstaple · EX32 7LU
Parracombe Church of England Primary School
Primary · Voluntary controlled school
Barnstaple · EX31 4QJ
Swimbridge Church of England Primary School
Primary · Voluntary aided school
Barnstaple · EX32 0PJ
Newport Community School Primary Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX32 9BW
Orchard Vale Community School
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX32 8QY
Pilton Bluecoat Church of England Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX31 1JU
Our Lady's Catholic Primary School, Barnstaple
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX32 8DN
Brayford Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX32 7QJ
Holywell Church of England School
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX31 3HZ
Bratton Fleming Community Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX31 4SB
Ashleigh CofE Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX32 8LJ
Landkey Community Primary Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX32 0LJ
Sticklepath Community Primary Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX31 2HH
Eden Park Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX32 8EF
Yeo Valley Primary School
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Barnstaple · EX32 7HB
Roundswell Community Primary Academy
Primary · Free schools
Barnstaple · EX31 3WJ
Fremington Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX31 3DD
Pilton Infants' Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX31 1JU
Horwood and Newton Tracey Community Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX31 3PU
Shirwell Community Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX31 4JT
Marwood School
Primary · Academy converter
Barnstaple · EX31 4HF
Secondary Schools in Barnstaple (2)
Other Schools in Barnstaple (4)
West Buckland School
Not applicable · Other independent school
Barnstaple · EX32 0SX
Pathfield School
Not applicable · Foundation special school
Barnstaple · EX31 1JU
On Track Education Barnstaple
Not applicable · Other independent special school
Barnstaple · EX31 3UD
The Lampard Community School
Not applicable · Academy special converter
Barnstaple · EX32 9DD
Catchment area boundaries for schools in Barnstaple are set by Devon and updated each year. The "last distance offered", how far the furthest successful applicant lived, changes annually based on the number of applications received.