School admissions in Sturminster Newton
How heavily each school was applied to for September 2026 entry, from the applications and offers every admissions authority reports to the DfE. 1 of these schools also have a published admissions cutoff distance. 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.
Sturminster Newton in figures
For Reception places in September 2026, families named the 4 schools in Sturminster Newton first 51 times for 50 places: 1.02 first choices per place, against 1.00 across the Dorset authority's 118 schools. One of the 4 had more first choices than places. For 2026 entry, one school here gave its last places on distance: Hazelbury Bryan Primary School, to 3.31 miles.
Totals for the schools listed on this page. Applications and offers on national offer day, DfE; last-offer distances as the council published them.
Reception places, September 2026
4 schools. 1 received more first preferences than they had places.
| School | First preferences per place | Places | Cutoff distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hazelbury Bryan Primary School | 1.07 | 15 | 3.312 miles |
| St Gregory's Church of England Primary School, Marnhull | 1.00 | 6 | not published |
| St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Marnhull | 1.00 | 6 | not published |
| William Barnes Primary School | 1.00 | 23 | not 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.