Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School

Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School continues to uphold the standards achieved at its last inspection, showcasing effective school management and supportive community values. The headteacher Rosaleen Beaver leads a nurturing environment where pupils feel happy and safe, and parents express high levels of satisfaction regarding the school's commitment to education. The curriculum is ambitious, with a strong foundation in reading, writing, and mathematics starting in early years education, ensuring that most students make good progress in their learning. Despite these strengths, there are areas that require improvement. The recent curriculum changes have not been fully embedded, leading to some gaps in subject-specific knowledge for a few pupils. The school is taking proactive steps to support all students, including those with SEND and disadvantaged backgrounds, but it must ensure that safeguarding records are consistently detailed to avoid missing critical information. Overall, the inspection highlighted the school’s dedication to personal development and its efforts to cultivate a positive learning atmosphere.

Strengths

• Welcoming and inclusive environment fostering high pupil attendance and pride in the school.
• Strong focus on reading, writing, and mathematics from an early age, aiding in pupils' confidence as learners.
• Effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• Ambitious curriculum with recent refinements supporting knowledge development.
• Rich personal development experiences, including varied extracurricular activities.
• Strong supportive leadership and well-being initiatives for staff.

Areas for Improvement

• Gaps in subject-specific knowledge due to not fully embedded curriculum changes.
• Insufficient detail in safeguarding records, which could lead to important information being overlooked.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School attended 94.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 11.9% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 0.5% of pupils at Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School had 21.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 9.1% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 12.5% of pupils at Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.8% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School received £6,831 and spent £6,706 for each of its 206 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £149,000 (£721 per pupil).

Across all 28 schools of Diocese of Salisbury Academy Trust, income was £7,549 and spending £7,556 per pupil.

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Blandford Forum · Dorset local authority: places and applications

Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School is part of Diocese of Salisbury Academy Trust, which runs 28 schools. The nearest others:

• Archbishop Wake Church of England Primary School Blandford Forum
• Milldown CofE Academy Blandford Forum
• Spetisbury CofE Primary School Blandford Forum
• Durweston Church of England Primary School Blandford Forum
• Dunbury Church of England Academy Winterborne Whitechurch
• St James Church of England First School Wimborne
• Wimborne St Giles Church of England First School and Nursery Wimborne
• Cranborne Church of England First School Wimborne
• Trinity Church of England First School Verwood
• Broad Chalke CofE Primary School Salisbury

What is Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School is Good, from an inspection in May 2025.

When was Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School was last inspected in May 2025.

How many pupils does Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School have?

Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School has 208 pupils on roll.

What age range does Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School cover?

Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 67% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School?

Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School is at Birch Avenue, Blandford St Mary, Blandford Forum, Dorset, DT11 9QD.