SchoolFacts.uk

Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School

Primary · Blandford Forum · DT11 9QD

Data updated

⇄ Compare with another school
Good (2019)

Last grade Ofsted published, no newer grade exists

Ofsted graded this school Good in 2019. Every inspection since has been ungraded, and an ungraded inspection cannot change a grade. The most recent found “Standards maintained”. Ofsted's current data file lists only graded inspections from September 2019 onwards, so this grade has dropped out of it, but it is still the school's grade of record, and still on Ofsted's own report page. It is old, so weigh it against the more recent evidence on this page.

Inspected 8 May 2019

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

208 pupils · 99% of 210 capacity (January 2026 census)

School type
Academy converter
Age range
2–11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England
Free school meals
27.4% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
3.9% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
12.6% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
2.4% of pupils (2024/2025)
Nursery
Yes
Website
http://www.blandfordstmary.dsat.org.uk
URN
141046

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 33 families named it first for 30 Reception places, 1.10 first choices per place. Its last Reception place offered on distance for 2026 entry went to 1.638 miles, the only Reception round we hold for it. The last grade Ofsted published for it is Good, from 2019. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 5.1% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Reception entry, September 2026

1.10 first-choice applications per place

30 places offered · 33 first-choice applications · oversubscribed

First-choice applications per place, by entry year

19/20
20/21
21/22
22/23
23/24
24/25
25/26
26/27

Source: DfE applications and offers on national offer day · how demand is measured

Catchment area

Catchment area: not named in the council's figures. Places by distance, last offered at 1.638 miles for 2026 entry.

Admissions cutoff distance: Reception

Last child offered a place under the distance criterion (2026 entry) lived within 1.638 miles

measurement method not stated by the council.

Would you have got in? Check your postcode

One free check a month, no account needed: your postcode against this school's cutoff history. Premium adds unlimited checks, the nearby schools you would be inside, and the address check across every school at once.

Unlock with SchoolFacts Premium →

Source: the admissions authority's published figures · how cutoffs work

Key stage 2 results (2024/2025)

30 pupils at the end of key stage 2 in 2024/2025

Reaching the expected standard in reading, writing & maths
67%
England 62%
Reaching the higher standard
7%
England 8%
Average scaled score (reading)
106
England 106
Average scaled score (maths)
106
England 105

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means

Schools with a similar intake

Meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, 2024/2025

This school67%
Median of its 12 closest peers68.5%
Dorset average56.5%
England62%

On meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, this school is in line with the schools that teach a comparable intake.

They are matched on intake, not location, so most are not local: see nearby schools for those you could apply to.

SchoolOfstedResult
Greatstone Primary SchoolNew Romney · 136 miles awayNeeds attention43%
Banks St Stephen's CofE SchoolSouthport · 198 miles awayNeeds attention55%
de Vere Primary SchoolHalstead · 143 miles awayGood70%
Lakeside Primary SchoolTamworth · 124 miles awayExpected standard77%
Lumley Junior SchoolChester le Street · 277 miles awayGood77%
St Clement's Catholic Primary SchoolRuncorn · 173 miles awayGood (2016)81%
Canvey Primary School and NurseryCanvey Island · 127 miles awayGood74%
St Teresa's Catholic Primary SchoolThornton-Cleveleys · 212 miles awayNo current grade43%
Byerley Park Primary SchoolNewton Aycliffe · 262 miles awayExpected standard73%
Barton St Peter's CofE Primary SchoolBarton-upon-Humber · 209 miles awayExpected standard61%
Winchelsea Primary School RuskingtonSleaford · 169 miles awayGood67%
Todmorden CofE J, I & N SchoolTodmorden · 198 miles awayGood56%

It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 90% (Dorset 88%, England 60%) · Any other White background 5% (Dorset 3%, England 7%) · Any other Mixed background 2% (Dorset 1%, England 3%) · Mixed White and Black Caribbean 2% (Dorset 1%, England 2%) · Mixed White and Asian 1% (Dorset 1%, England 2%)

Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures

Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)

Sessions missed (overall absence)
5.1%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
13.8%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

0.49 suspensions per 100 pupils and 0 permanent exclusions · England, primary schools: 2.47 suspensions and 0.03 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Dorset: 2.92 suspensions and 0.03 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils

Suspensions and exclusions, last three years Premium

Premium shows the same figures for each of the last three years.

Unlock with SchoolFacts Premium →

Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms, and DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions, school-level file · how absence is measured · how to read exclusions

Staffing

Pupils per qualified teacher
21.9
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

91% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 9% left the state-funded sector

Vacancies (November 2025)

0% of teaching posts vacant, 0% filled temporarily · England, primary academies: 0.3% vacant, 0.32% temporary

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

30% of teachers took sickness absence, 3 days each on average · England, all state-funded schools: 61.8%, 8.1 days

Teacher pay (November 2025)

Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £50,463; 16.7% on the leadership pay range · England, primary schools: £50,856, 17.3%

Vacancies, sickness and pay, last three years Premium

Premium shows the same figures for each of the last three years.

Unlock with SchoolFacts Premium →

Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted

Spending per pupil (2024-25)

This school£6,316
Typical primary school£7,202

Where the money went (2024-25)

Share of spending, with the median for primary schools in brackets: Staff 80% (77%) · premises 3% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 13% (8%) · supplies and services 4% (9%) · educational supplies 5% (4%) · bought-in professional services 0% (2%) · catering 4% (5%)

Reserves (2024-25)

Revenue reserve £151,000; in-year balance +£98,000

Spending and reserves, last three years Premium

Premium shows the same figures for each of the last three years.

Unlock with SchoolFacts Premium →

Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: academy finance return, 2024-25, DfE · how spending is compared

Inspection history since 2015

Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems

The area around the school

Child poverty (IDACI)
6/10around the middle for England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
6/10around the middle for England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher27.2%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications18.1%18.1%
In managerial or professional work29.2%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways17.8%18.1%
Residents in very good health51%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier58.4%62.3%
Social housing25.1%17.1%
Privately rented16.5%20.5%
Detached houses19.4%22.9%
Flats12%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms15.6%21.1%
Households with no car or van11%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01020452 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£298,500198 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£239,000–£375,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (39)£436,500
Semi-detached (57)£300,000
Terraced (56)£295,000
Flat (46)£135,500

Homes around this school are dearer than most school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.

Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Roads around the school

Child pedestrian casualties
1an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
4an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
13an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
5an urban school averages 6.1

A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted

Nearby schools