Schools in Wimborne
Dorset · 26 schools
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 5 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to Dorset (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 81 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Dorset (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Schools in Wimborne (26)
- Allenbourn Middle School
Secondary · Ages 9-13 · BH21 1PL
Ofsted: Outstanding (2012)KS2: 83% expected (2025) - Rushcombe First School
Primary · Ages 4-9 · BH21 3PX
Ofsted: Outstanding (2022)60% of first choices got in - Aurora Beeches School
Special · Ages 11-16 · Independent · BH21 5RT
Ofsted: Good (2024)Attainment 8: 10.7 (2026)Grammar (11-plus) - Henbury View First School
Primary · Ages 5-9 · BH21 3TR
Ofsted: Good (2023)61% of first choices got in - Pamphill Church of England First School
Primary · Ages 5-9 · BH21 4EE
Ofsted: Good (2023)86% of first choices got in - St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill
Secondary · Ages 9-13 · BH21 7AB
Ofsted: Good (2018)KS2: 81% expected (2025) - Wimborne First School and Nursery
Primary · Ages 2-9 · BH21 4FW
Ofsted: Good (2024)79% of first choices got in - Queen Elizabeth's School
Secondary · Ages 13-18 · BH21 4DT
Ofsted: Requires Improvement (2023)Attainment 8: 44.4 (2026) - Sturminster Marshall First School
Primary · Ages 4-9 · BH21 4AY
Ofsted: Requires Improvement (2022)92% of first choices got in - Canford School
Senior · Ages 13-18 · Independent · BH21 3AD
Attainment 8: 28.3 (2026)Grammar (11-plus) - Dumpton School
Independent · Ages 2-13 · Independent · BH21 7AF
- Hampreston Church of England Voluntary Aided First School
Primary · Ages 5-9 · BH21 7LX
- South West Regional Assessment Centre
Special · Ages 16-25 · BH21 3AA
- Wimborne St Giles Church of England First School and Nursery
Primary · Ages 2-9 · BH21 5LX
Showing 20 of 26 schools
By type:Primary schools in Wimborne (15)Secondary schools in Wimborne (5)Special schools in Wimborne (4)Senior schools in Wimborne (1)Independent schools in Wimborne (1)
26
15 primary · 5 secondary
6,668
87% capacity used
15
1 outstanding · 14 good
7,687
1,019 spare places
Ofsted Ratings
Best Schools in Wimborne
View the full league table - ranked by Ofsted, Progress 8, KS2 results and more
Best Schools in Dorset
Compare all schools across the county
Area Performance (2026)
Attainment 8
27.8
GCSE Eng+Maths
19.3%
School Capacity & Demand
Housing Growth Detected
1,127 new homes approved nearby. This could generate an estimated +282 primary and +203 secondary pupils.
Source: MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years)
Primary Schools
92% occupied · 205 spare places
Secondary Schools
88% occupied · 415 spare places
Questions parents ask about schools in Wimborne
How many schools are there in Wimborne?
Wimborne has 26 open schools: 15 state primary, 5 state secondary or all-through, 2 independent and 4 special.
Source: DfE Get Information About Schools
Which schools in Wimborne are rated Outstanding?
2 schools in Wimborne were rated Outstanding at their most recent graded Ofsted inspection: Rushcombe First School and Allenbourn Middle School. Counting Good as well, 90% of the 20 graded schools here are rated Good or better. Ofsted stopped giving single-word overall grades in September 2024, so these are the grades from each school's last full inspection.
Rushcombe First SchoolAllenbourn Middle School
Source: Ofsted
Are there grammar schools in Wimborne?
No. None of the state secondary schools in Wimborne selects pupils by ability, so every state secondary here is comprehensive.
Source: DfE Get Information About Schools
Do schools in Wimborne have catchment areas?
Most state schools in Wimborne have no fixed catchment boundary. When a school is oversubscribed, the council allocates places on its published criteria - usually looked-after children first, then siblings, then home-to-school distance - so the practical cut-off moves each year. Each school's page here shows an estimate of its catchment radius.
How do I apply for a school place in Wimborne?
Apply to your council - Dorset; or Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, depending on your address - through its coordinated admissions process, even for academies and faith schools. In England the closing date is 31 October for secondary places and 15 January for primary places, in the year before your child starts. Independent schools run their own admissions, so apply to those directly.