Wimborne First School and Nursery

Wimborne First School and Nursery is performing well overall, achieving a 'Good' rating in all domains assessed. The school has successfully managed significant changes in recent years, including moving to a new building and increasing its pupil intake, all while maintaining a supportive and nurturing environment. Parents appreciate the school's responsiveness to their concerns and the strong relationships fostered between staff and pupils. The curriculum is well-structured and ambitious, with effective teaching leading to high academic outcomes, particularly in phonics. However, there are areas for improvement, particularly in the precision of assessment systems, which sometimes hinder pupils from showing their full capabilities.

Strengths

• Strong academic and emotional support for pupils.
• Effective leadership that maintains a close-knit community feel.
• Well-structured and ambitious curriculum.
• High outcomes in phonics and other academic areas.
• Pupils demonstrate positive attitudes and engage well in school activities.
• Robust safeguarding measures in place.

Areas for Improvement

• Assessment systems need further precision.
• Teachers do not consistently use assessment data to inform lesson planning.

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 Wimborne First School and Nursery attended 95.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 8.4% 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, 1.0% of pupils at Wimborne First School and Nursery 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 Wimborne First School and Nursery had 21.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 11.6% 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, 6.2% of pupils at Wimborne First School and Nursery were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.5% 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 Wimborne First School and Nursery received £6,070 and spent £6,321 for each of its 401 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £46,000 (£114 per pupil).

Across all 36 schools of Hamwic Education Trust, income was £7,058 and spending £7,015 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 Wimborne · Dorset local authority: places and applications

Wimborne First School and Nursery is part of Hamwic Education Trust, which runs 36 schools. The nearest others:

• Henbury View First School Wimborne
• Springdale First School Broadstone
• Hampreston Church of England Voluntary Aided First School Wimborne
• Bearwood Primary and Nursery School Bournemouth
• Hillbourne Primary School Poole
• Upton Infant School Poole
• Upton Junior School Poole
• Livingstone Road Junior School Poole
• Livingstone Road Infant School Poole
• Lytchett Matravers Primary School Poole

What is Wimborne First School and Nursery's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Wimborne First School and Nursery is Good, from an inspection in September 2024.

When was Wimborne First School and Nursery last inspected by Ofsted?

Wimborne First School and Nursery was last inspected in September 2024.

How many pupils does Wimborne First School and Nursery have?

Wimborne First School and Nursery has 400 pupils on roll.

What age range does Wimborne First School and Nursery cover?

Wimborne First School and Nursery for pupils aged 2 to 9.

Where is Wimborne First School and Nursery?

Wimborne First School and Nursery is at Campanula Way, Wimborne, Dorset, BH21 4FW.