Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School

Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School is performing well overall, with pupils achieving above national averages in reading and mathematics. The school has a strong culture of safeguarding and is committed to ensuring that all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make substantial progress. Teachers generally deliver an ambitious curriculum effectively, and pupils demonstrate a positive attitude towards learning and their personal development, preparing them well for secondary education.

Strengths

• Pupils achieve above national averages in reading and mathematics.
• Strong safeguarding measures creating a safe learning environment.
• Ambitious and well-sequenced curriculum.
• Effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• High rates of attendance and positive behaviour among pupils.

Areas for Improvement

• A minority of pupils do not learn complex writing concepts as quickly as they should.
• Occasional lapses in staff using assessment information precisely to deepen pupil understanding.

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 Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School attended 95.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 10.0% 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, 0.9% of pupils at Buckland Newton 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 Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School had 21.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% 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, 30.0% of pupils at Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 7.3% 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 2021–22 Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School received £7,107 and spent £6,927 for each of its 93 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £127,000 (£1,367 per pupil).

Across all 15 schools of Sherborne Area Schools' Trust, income was £6,237 and spending £6,314 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 Dorchester · Dorset local authority: places and applications

Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School is part of Sherborne Area Schools' Trust, which runs 17 schools. The nearest others:

• St Andrew's Church of England Primary School Sherborne
• Thornford CofE Primary School Sherborne
• Sherborne Abbey Church of England Primary School Sherborne
• Sherborne Primary School Sherborne
• Sturminster Newton High School Sturminster Newton
• The Gryphon School Sherborne
• St Mary's Church of England Primary School, Bradford Abbas Sherborne
• Shillingstone Church of England Primary School Blandford Forum
• St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford Blandford Forum
• Charlton Horethorne Church of England Primary School Sherborne

What is Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in April 2026.

When was Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School was last inspected in April 2026.

How many pupils does Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School have?

Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School has 110 pupils on roll.

What age range does Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School cover?

Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 71% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School?

Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School is at Buckland Newton, Dorchester, Dorset, DT2 7BY.