Photo: Deconstructhis · Public domainThe schools around Exeter answer to 3 boards
Avon Maitland DSB has 5 of them, and Huron Perth CDSB and Lambton Kent DSB share the others. Results are mixed: 1 of 6 schools above the middle in Ontario, 2 below it. Within 3 km of Exeter are 7 elementary schools and 1 secondary school, teaching 2,015 students.
What stands out about Exeter’s schools
No French-language school
None of the 8 schools here teaches in French; in Ontario, 10% of schools do. Language ↓
Small elementary schools
At 214 students on average, against 365 in Ontario, the elementary schools are small. Every school ↓
The strongest results
The area’s best results are at Stephen Central Public School (elementary), in the top fifth in Ontario. Results ↓
The comparisons are with the province’s schools, never across provinces.
3 boards, school by school
The boards and their schools here.
| Board | System | Schools | Students |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avon Maitland DSBSouth Huron District, Exeter, Bluewater Coast Elementary, South Huron, Stephen Central | English public | 5 | 1,380 |
| Huron Perth CDSBPrecious Blood Separate, Our Lady of Mt Carmel | English Catholic | 2 | 365 |
| Lambton Kent DSBGrand Bend | English public | 1 | 270 |
Boards as Ontario’s list names them (its short forms: DSB, CDSB, CS).
How Exeter’s schools do on Ontario’s tests
EQAO’s Grade 3, 6 and 9 assessments and the literacy test, 2024-25: each school against every school in Ontario.
Its School Grade is B: it compares these results with the other towns of the province.
The area’s schools by fifth of the province
Each school’s band is the average of its measures’ fifths. The mark shows an even fifth of the area’s schools.
| Measure | Schools | Middle here | Ontario |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 3 reading | 5 | 73% | 76% |
| Grade 3 writing | 5 | 67% | 65% |
| Grade 3 math | 5 | 71% | 65% |
| Grade 6 reading | 5 | 78% | 88% |
| Grade 6 writing | 5 | 80% | 86% |
| Grade 6 math | 5 | 44% | 51% |
| Grade 9 math | 1 | 48% | 55% |
| Literacy test (OSSLT), first try | 1 | 82% | 85% |
Furthest from the provincial middle is Grade 6 math: 44% here, against 51% in Ontario. 2 measures above the provincial middle, 6 below, out of 8. At 3 schools more of the measures rose than fell over three years; at 3, more fell.
Every school’s results (6)
| School | Measure | Band |
|---|---|---|
| Stephen Central Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–6 | G3 reading 92% · G3 writing 100% · G3 math 75% · G6 reading 96% · G6 writing 96% · G6 math 60% | Top fifth |
| Bluewater Coast Elementary Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–6 | G3 reading 81% · G3 writing 88% · G3 math 75% · G6 reading 61% · G6 writing 61% · G6 math 6% | Middle fifth |
| Exeter Elementary SchoolElementary · Grades JK–6 | G3 reading 68% · G3 writing 67% · G3 math 71% · G6 reading 86% · G6 writing 76% · G6 math 43% | Middle fifth |
| Precious Blood Separate SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 71% · G3 writing 67% · G3 math 62% · G6 reading 78% · G6 writing 87% · G6 math 52% | Middle fifth |
| Grand Bend Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 73% · G3 writing 57% · G3 math 65% · G6 reading 72% · G6 writing 80% · G6 math 44% | Fourth fifth |
| South Huron District High SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | G9 math 48% · OSSLT 82% | Fourth fifth |
Ontario Ministry of Education, School Information Finder 2024–25 (EQAO results; N/R where groups are too small). Open Government Licence – Ontario.
Where the 8 schools in and around Exeter are
Each pin is a school, coloured by the system that runs it, sized by its students where the province publishes them.
Points from the provincial lists.
Schooling in English and French around Exeter
Each school by its language of instruction, with the share in Ontario marked.
The mark on each bar is the share of schools in Ontario.
Not one teaches in French.
Section 23 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms gives French-speaking parents the right to French-language schooling for their children, through the French-language boards.
Who runs Exeter’s schools
Each level’s schools by system: English public, English Catholic, French-language, and independent or other.
Grouped by system: English public 6 and English Catholic 2.
The provincial school lists: each school’s board, language and Catholic or public status.
How children get a place in Exeter
The neighbourhood school
A home address sets the designated school in each board’s attendance area. Registration is with the board; a school outside the area admits only where there is space.
Catholic schools
Ontario’s Catholic boards are publicly funded. Their elementary schools generally ask that a parent or the child be Catholic; their high schools are open to all students.
The provinces’ education acts and the boards’ own admission policies; check with the board for a given address.
The 8 schools in and around Exeter
High schools within reach of Exeter
Secondary and all-grade schools within 15 km, by distance.
Families have one high school within 15 km: South Huron District High School, 3.7 km off.
| School | Board | System | Band | Students | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Huron District High SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | Avon Maitland DSB | English public | Fourth fifth | 520 | 3.7 km |
Distances in a straight line from the town’s centre point.
Towns its size in Ontario
Towns of a similar population, with their schools in or within 3 km; described, not ranked.
| Town | Population | Schools | Students | French | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kennedy Park | 17,156 | 70 | 30,565 | 3 | 0.4 km |
| … | |||||
| Wendover | 10,896 | 11 | 1,255 | 11 | 1.6 km |
| Bendale South | 10,885 | 64 | 26,345 | 3 | 0.8 km |
| Walkerton | 10,811 | 13 | 4,305 | 0 | 2.3 km |
| Westminster | 10,794 | 34 | 15,145 | 2 | 0.6 km |
| Exeter | 10,781 | 8 | 2,015 | 0 | 3.8 km |
| Alexandria | 10,772 | 11 | 1,325 | 6 | 4 km |
| Shelburne | 10,767 | 4 | 2,260 | 0 | 0.5 km |
| Victoria Hills | 10,760 | 39 | 21,155 | 1 | 1.8 km |
| Grand River South | 10,723 | 24 | 9,340 | 4 | 1 km |
| … | |||||
| Tweed | 6,504 | 2 | 515 | 0 | 15 km |
Set against 378 others, 319 have more schools in reach. Schooling in French is on hand in 273 of the 379.
Populations from Statistics Canada; schools from the provincial lists, in or within 3 km of each town.
Schools in the towns around Exeter
For each nearby town, its schools in or within 3 km of its outline, with straight-line distances.
The neighbour with most schools is Bayfield (12).
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The year. 2024-25, the latest open list.
- Boards and systems. A school’s system is its board’s: the language it teaches in, and whether the board is public or Catholic.
- What isn’t here. Inspection reports with ratings don’t exist here, and the lists give enrolment for one year at most.
- Bands, not ranks. Each result is placed in a fifth of Ontario’s schools on the same measure; a school’s band averages its fifths. EQAO doesn’t report small groups, so no school is ranked to the place.
- Which schools count. Inside Exeter’s boundary, or no more than 3 km outside it: that is which schools are counted.
- The kinds of school. Schools are grouped by what they teach: elementary, secondary, every grade, and the alternative, adult and online programs.
Questions about schools in Exeter
How do I get a place at a school in Exeter?
Registration is with the board, which assigns the school for the home address.
Which boards run the schools in Exeter?
Avon Maitland DSB (5), Huron Perth CDSB (2) and Lambton Kent DSB (1), with each one’s schools in brackets.
Is there a French-language school in Exeter?
There is none in or near Exeter (within 3 km); the French-language board covers the area from elsewhere.
How many schools are there in Exeter?
6 in the town, 2 just beyond it, within 3 km.
Sources: Ontario Ministry of Education, School Information Finder 2024–25 and school contact list (Open Government Licence – Ontario) · map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).