Poulner Junior School, Ringwood
Poulner Junior School is a primary school for pupils aged 7 to 11 in Ringwood. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in May 2019. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in November 2024 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 112th-highest of the 305 schools in Hampshire with published results, and 5,545th of 14,452 across England. It was 92% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- In line with England
- Ofsted
- Good (2019)
- Capacity
- 92% full
- Attendance
- In line with England
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Poulner Junior School in detail
Poulner Junior School in its own words
From the headteacher's welcome: "As Headteacher of Poulner Junior School, I am delighted to introduce you to our school. It is our aim at Poulner for every child to feel valued and cared for by providing a happy and secure school environment where the focus is on high quality teaching and learning."
Clubs and activities named on the school's website include football, netball, basketball, cross-country, choir, chess, Lego, gardening, art and knitting.
Headteacher's welcome (school website)Clubs (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 83% of Year 6 pupils at Poulner Junior School reached the expected standard in reading and 78% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 77% and 75% in Hampshire and 77% and 75% across England.
Results rose from 77% in reading and 68% in maths in 2024.
Getting a place at Poulner Junior School
Across Hampshire, 93% of families were offered their first-choice primary school for 2026 entry, and 99% were offered one of the schools they named.
In 2026, families in Hampshire lodged 254 appeals against primary school offers; 146 reached a hearing and 8 succeeded (5.5% of those heard).
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Poulner Junior School are Poulner Infant School and Nursery (under 0.1 miles, Good); Ringwood Church of England Infant School (1.1 miles, Good); Ringwood Junior School (1.1 miles, Good, 70% reading, 73% maths); and St Ives Primary & Nursery School (2.7 miles, Outstanding, 97% reading, 100% maths).
Poulner Junior School's 2025 results were higher than 1 of these 2 schools.
Poulner Infant School and NurseryRingwood Church of England Infant SchoolRingwood Junior SchoolSt Ives Primary & Nursery School
What parents say
88 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Poulner Junior School (as of September 2025): 93% would recommend the school, 91% say their child is happy there and 58% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that they would recommend the school (93%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (58%).
Who goes there
2.6% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 13 pupils (4.9%) received SEN support and 21 (7.9%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is a specific learning difficulty such as dyslexia.
Getting there
There is no railway, tram or Underground station within about three miles of Poulner Junior School.
3 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Poulner Schools (opposite), 70 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Poulner Junior School stands in is among the 10% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
In August 2026, police recorded 34 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, criminal damage and arson and other theft. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Hampshire (72).
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Poulner Junior School issued 6 suspensions, 2.2 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Our estimate from how close the nearest similar schools are and how oversubscribed the council's schools are. It is not a published boundary.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from May 2019, 7 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: Standards have been maintained.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's November 2024 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Poulner Junior School is a happy place where children enjoy learning and take pride in their school. The school has strong teaching across subjects and makes reading a priority, with pupils reading widely and confidently. Pupils develop into thoughtful citizens who understand respect, responsibility and the importance of fundamental British values.
Key Strengths
- Strong focus on teaching reading with well-sequenced phonics programme and high-quality texts
- Broad and ambitious curriculum with identified key knowledge across all subjects
- Effective support for pupils with SEND, quickly identified with appropriate help in place
- Strong governance providing effective support and challenge
- High staff morale with leaders managing workload well
Areas for Improvement
- Teachers need to adapt learning better to ensure disadvantaged pupils with barriers to learning progress well through the curriculum
- Staff need better skills to identify the building blocks of learning that disadvantaged pupils need
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective with strong culture prioritising pupil wellbeing.
Extracurricular Activities
House captains, play leaders, sports leaders, charity fundraising events, breakfast and after-school club
Poulner Junior School has maintained good standards of education with pupils achieving well across the curriculum. The school is ambitious for all pupils and prioritises reading, personal development, and the HEART values of honesty, excellence, attitude, respect and thoughtfulness.
At a Glance
23.0%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
88 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has improved from 77% to 83% (2024 to 2025). Maths has improved from 68% to 78% (2024 to 2025). Writing has improved from 77% to 89% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
29.5
Avg class size
29.5
KS2
6
Total classes
1 class with more than 30 pupils
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Latest from Poulner Junior School
From Poulner Junior School's website. School Signal is not affiliated with the school.
Keep up with Poulner Junior School
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near Poulner Junior School.
- Globe Fit Kids Clubs - PoulnerAt the school · Not yet graded
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Poulner Junior School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Poulner Junior School is in Hampshire; for families living there:
Apply to Hampshire for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 5
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 1
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 5 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 1 serious and 4 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot.
1 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Hampshire is 9 (the median across 617 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
92%
Near capacity
271 pupils
294 places
23 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Ringwood
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Ringwood
Across Hampshire council
Places available
15,642
Applications
12,982
Got 1st preference
93.4%
Got preferred school
98.9%
All primary applications across Hampshire council (2026/27), not just this school.
Inspection History(10)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
13
SEN Support
21
EHC Plans
12.8%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
265
Total Pupils
140
Boys
125
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
15
Teachers
17.7:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£51,382
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,245
Per pupil
£1554k
Total funding
£88k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.2%
Overall absence
9.9%
Persistent absence
273
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Poulner Junior School
Questions parents ask about Poulner Junior School
What are SATs results like at Poulner Junior School?
Of the pupils at Poulner Junior School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 83% reached the expected standard in reading and 78% did so in maths.
What is Poulner Junior School's Ofsted rating?
Poulner Junior School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in November 2024, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in May 2019, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Poulner Junior School?
No fixed boundary. When Poulner Junior School is oversubscribed, Hampshire allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Poulner Junior School?
Poulner Junior School was not full in 2025: it ran at 92% of its 294 places.
How big are the classes at Poulner Junior School?
Classes at Poulner Junior School average 29.5 pupils (2025/26). 1 class has more than 30 pupils - infant classes are capped at 30 by law, with limited exceptions.
How many pupils go to Poulner Junior School?
Poulner Junior School has around 265 pupils on roll. 23% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Poulner Junior School?
5.2% of sessions were missed at Poulner Junior School in 2024/25. 9.9% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Poulner Junior School?
Apply through Hampshire's coordinated admissions process, naming Poulner Junior School on your application. The national closing date in England is 31 October for secondary places and 15 January for primary places, in the year before your child starts.
Does Poulner Junior School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club at the school: Globe Fit Kids Clubs - Poulner (registered, not yet graded). The school may also run its own clubs, which don't have to register with Ofsted.
How many road collisions happen near Poulner Junior School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 5 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 1 serious and 4 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot. 1 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Hampshire is 9 (the median across 617 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Poulner Junior School?
Poulner Junior School is at North Poulner Road, North Poulner, Ringwood, Hampshire, BH24 3LA.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)