South Dartmoor is a Specialist Sports College (97); a Training School (01); a Trust School (07); and A School of Creativity (09 Creative Partnerships/Arts Council).  An 11-18, co-educational comprehensive school with 1670 on roll and situated within the National Park, it serves a wide rural area of over 350 square miles.

The Trust consists of partnerships with Capita Children's Services, Exeter University, TLO and Glendinnings. Priorities are parental training in using technology to access information, publication of teacher research to impact on standards and developing student voice to inform teaching.

With the University, Maths and Science teachers have been developing new practice in their subjects. In Maths the focus is on student led questioning with teachers listening to classroom recordings of learning conversations in their subject; in Science it is on motivating girls by grounding the subject in practical, ethical and social reality.

Work with Capita has enabled an intensive parental training programme to take the school into the home electronically by giving parents access to information with ease and immediacy.  The company have supported an intensive parental training programme to encourage all to use  the system. With TLO, the school is developing student led reports on classroom learning environments.

Glendinnings, a local quarrying and aggregates company have long supported the school. As a Trust partner they have maintained their interest in sports facilities, creating an additional games pitch and developing a new mountain bike trail to allow training, cycle events and club development in a new area of sporting provision.

The Trust is chaired by Professor Debra Myhill, Head of the Graduate School of Education, Exeter University.

As part of our Specialist Sports College provision we lead the South Dartmoor School Sport Partnership. This covers 65 schools in total, comprising 55 primary schools, 3 special schools and 7 secondary schools including South Dartmoor.

The College holds a number of national and local awards:

• Rolls Royce Award: Girls into Science Project (09)
• Extended Schools Core Offer achieved April 09.
• Rolls Royce Award: cross-curricular work in Science (08)
• Investor in People (08 for the fifth time) and at Gold standard
• Investor in Careers (08 for the fifth time)
• BECTA ICT Mark (08)
• Devon Inclusion Award - Dyslexia (08)
• Work on Within School Variation is featured in NCSL publications: Schools Learning from their Best (08) and Narrowing the Gap (06) and will be in TDA Guidance in 2010.
• Investor in Work-Related and Enterprise Learning (07)
• Artsmark at Gold level (07 and for the third time)
• Sportsmark Award (07)
• Sports Partnership Mark (07)
• SIMS Partnership Schools (07)
• The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust Futures Vision Award for Excellence in Enterprise and Creativity (06)                  
• CASIO Digital Award for the school developing the most innovative use of digital photography (05/04)
• The College has created DVDs for teachers about managing student behaviour, developing as teachers and improving as sports coaches.

                            

The following schools are designated as feeder primaries and form the South Dartmoor Learning Community:
Ashburton, Blackpool, Bovey Tracey, Buckfastleigh, St Mary's (Buckfast), St Catherine's (Heathfield), Ilsington, Moretonhampstead and Widecombe-in-the-Moor. The planned admission number (PAN) is 270 and most years are full or over-intake. About 50 children in each year group are from out-of-catchment.

Click here to read the Admission Arrangements 2009 - 10 policy document.

Click here to read the Admission Arrangements 2010 - 11 policy document.

Click here to read the Induction Booklet given to all Year 6 students to welcome them to South Dartmoor.

The College is situated on the eastern edge of the town of Ashburton in an attractive rural setting. Most facilities are on one site with the Sixth Form Centre about three minutes' walk away. Accommodation and resources are well regarded. The main buildings, many new and well maintained, look out over the playing fields and open farmland. The land behind the College rises steadily to the hills and tors.