Christine Jones, the head teacher of Bassetts Farm School, was surprised when the students that arrived for the first day of school in her mixed primary school were 20 BOYS.
The school draws its pupils from across Exmouth – population 35,000 – making the odds of an all-boy class even more remarkable.
The odds of an all-boy class based on pure probability would be a million to one though factors like parental choice of school and selection criteria complicate the calculation.
But Mrs Jones was amazed when the male-only class showed up on January 7th, saying: “A million to one chance – it’s like winning the lottery.
“We celebrate our 30th anniversary this year and, quite honestly, it is the first time the foundation class has not had any girls.
“It is a record for us and probably unusual among other schools.”
The school has 320 pupils made up of an even number of boys and girls although some of the classes attended by older children have more boys than girls on the register.
