SchoolFacts.uk

School admissions in Dorchester

How heavily each school was applied to for September 2026 entry, from the applications and offers every admissions authority reports to the DfE. Sorted by first preferences per place. We don't invent rankings: the order is arithmetic on a published figure, not a view about which school is better.

Reception places, September 2026

16 schools. 3 received more first preferences than they had places.

SchoolFirst preferences per placePlacesCutoff distance
The Prince of Wales SchoolDorchester1.28290.867 miles 2026
St Mary's Catholic First School, DorchesterDorchester1.1429not published
St Mary's Church of England First School, CharminsterDorchester1.1030not published
Buckland Newton Church of England Primary SchoolDorchester1.0010not published
Cerne Abbas CofE VC First SchoolDorchester1.0016not published
Cheselbourne Village SchoolDORCHESTER1.007not published
Frome Valley CofE First SchoolDorchester1.0016not published
Puddletown Church of England First SchoolDorchester1.0029not published
Sticklands Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary SchoolDorchester1.0016not published
Thorner's Church of England School, Litton CheneyDorchester1.0016not published
Broadmayne First School and NurseryDorchester0.9522not published
Manor Park Church of England First SchoolDorchester0.9557not published
Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary SchoolDorchester0.9416not published
Winterbourne Valley Church of England Aided First SchoolDorchester0.9212not published
Damers First SchoolDorchester0.9175not published
Piddle Valley Church of England First SchoolDorchester0.888not published

First preferences per place is the number of families naming the school first, divided by its published admission number. Above 1.00 means more first choices than places. It is not a ranking and not a measure of quality: a popular school can be easy to get into and a quiet one hard, because places are allocated by each school's own criteria, siblings and faith and banding first, with distance often the last tie-breaker. Applications and offers on national offer day, DfE.