St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill

St Michael's Church of England Middle School has been reaffirmed as a good school during its ungraded inspection. Pupils enjoy their time at the school, demonstrating high attendance and engagement in a wide array of opportunities, including leadership roles and extracurricular activities. The school's commitment to high standards in both behaviour and academic achievement is evident, with effective support for pupils with special educational needs. Reading is emphasized heavily, and children are nurtured to develop their skills and interests, particularly in music and performing arts.

Strengths

• Pupils actively engage in leadership roles like student council and sports leaders.
• High expectations for pupil behaviour and safety are consistently met.
• Strong emphasis on reading, with effective support for weaker readers.
• Curriculum designed to develop transferable skills, particularly in communication.
• Robust personal development curriculum preparing pupils for adult life.
• Pupils are well supported in transition to the next stage of education.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent implementation of the curriculum across some subjects.

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 St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill attended 94.1% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 16.0% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

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, 2.6% of pupils at St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 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 St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill had 19.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.1% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

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, 17.4% of pupils at St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.6% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

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 secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill received £6,502 and spent £6,613 for each of its 583 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £120,000 (£205 per pupil).

Across all 19 schools of Initio Learning Trust, income was £7,286 and spending £7,320 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.

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All schools in Wimborne · Dorset local authority: places and applications

St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill is part of Initio Learning Trust, which runs 19 schools. The nearest others:

• Colehill First School Wimborne
• Hayeswood First School Wimborne
• St John's Church of England First School, Wimborne Wimborne
• Allenbourn Middle School Wimborne
• Queen Elizabeth's School Wimborne
• Merley First School Wimborne
• Pamphill Church of England First School Wimborne
• Lockyer's Middle School Wimborne
• Corfe Hills School Broadstone
• Witchampton Church of England First School Wimborne

What is St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill is Good, from an inspection in April 2024.

When was St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill last inspected by Ofsted?

St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill was last inspected in April 2024.

How many pupils does St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill have?

St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill has 563 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill cover?

St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill for pupils aged 9 to 13.

What are St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 65% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill?

St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill is at Colehill Lane, Colehill, Wimborne, Dorset, BH21 7AB.