St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford, Blandford Forum
Data last updated 11 Sept 2026
Location
Estimated admission likelihood based on school density and oversubscription data
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 6 months agoReport card - no overall grade (new Ofsted framework from Sep 2024)
Ofsted Insights
What This School Does Well
St Nicholas is a welcoming school where pupils behave well, attend regularly and feel genuinely cared for by staff. The school excels at personal development, offering residential trips, outdoor adventures and enrichment activities that build confidence and broaden horizons. Strong relationships and a focus on inclusion mean most pupils feel trusted and supported.
Key Strengths
- Strong attendance and behaviour culture with consistent implementation of expectations
- Pupils show genuine kindness and rarely experience bullying
- Well-designed, ambitious and broad curriculum with secure subject knowledge from teachers
- Excellent personal development programme including residential trips, outdoor adventures and enrichment activities
- Clear focus on safeguarding with an open, positive culture
Areas for Improvement
- Significant gaps in writing and mathematics attainment across the school
- Early years provision requires urgent improvement - children not learning sufficiently across key areas
- Inconsistent teaching quality and teachers not routinely checking pupil understanding
- Support for pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils has not been effective enough
- Prior learning gaps not being successfully addressed, particularly in maths and writing
Safeguarding
Safeguarding is effective - the school has created an open and positive culture where safety is everyone's responsibility, all legal requirements are met, and pupils feel safe.
Extracurricular Activities
Daily mile, school dog walking, sports ambassadors, Archbishop Young Leaders Programme, residential outdoor adventure trips, gardening club, art club, rugby club, football club, orienteering, Greek days, science days, museum visits
St Nicholas Church of England Primary School requires significant improvement overall, though it maintains strong attendance and behaviour standards. Safeguarding is effective, but achievement gaps in writing and mathematics, along with urgent concerns about early years provision, need rapid attention.
At a Glance
14.4%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2025/26KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has improved from 64% to 71%. Maths has improved from 36% to 57%. Writing has declined from 57% to 48%.
Class Sizes
29.0
Avg class size
28.0
Infant (KS1)
31.0
KS2
3
Total classes
1 class with more than 30 pupils
2024/25 academic year
Getting There
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
71%
Available places
125 pupils
175 capacity
50 spare places available
Area Demand Pressure - Blandford Forum
Based on MHCLG housing supply data for Blandford Forum
Admissions Demand - Dorset
Places available
3,776
Applications
2,808
Got 1st preference
94.1%
Got preferred school
99.1%
Primary admissions across Dorset (2025/26)
Inspection History(2)
House Prices
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SEN Provision
How many pupils have special educational needs, what types of support the school provides, and how it compares to similar schools.
Pupil Demographics
The school's pupil mix - ethnicity breakdown, free school meals eligibility, and English as an additional language. Useful context when evaluating school fit.
Teachers & Staff
Teacher qualification rates, pupil-to-teacher ratio, staff turnover, and salary data. Shows how well-resourced and stable the school's workforce is.
School Funding
Annual funding per pupil, total budget, pupil premium grants, and how the school's resources compare to similar schools nationally.
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.68877%
Overall absence
13.11475%
Persistent absence
122
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
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Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford
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