Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School

Lulworth and Winfrith CofE VC Primary School is performing well across all inspected areas. Inspectors found an ambitious school where pupils are happy, feel safe and behave well, and where a reinvigorated curriculum is helping pupils understand and remember more. The school has been through significant change: it joined The Coastal Learning Partnership, many leaders are new, and this was its first section 5 inspection since academy conversion. The trust has provided effective support, staff feel well supported, and pupils with SEND are generally well supported to access learning. Leaders know there is more to do. In some lessons, including phonics, activities are too complicated and give pupils too few opportunities to practise, which particularly affects disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND. Behaviour expectations are not consistently upheld in all sessions, so some pupils lose focus and valuable teaching time is lost. Attendance is improving and is now in line with national figures, and safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Strengths

• Ambitious, well-thought-out curriculum that is improving pupils' understanding and recall.
• Strong support for pupils with SEND, including renewed provision and better access to learning.
• Pupils feel safe, behave well and treat adults and each other with respect.
• Effective early years provision with clear phonics and a high priority on language development.
• Rich personal development opportunities tailored to the community and covering a range of religions.
• Effective systems to manage and reward behaviour, with bullying and unkindness reported as rare.
• Improving attendance through structured monitoring, now in line with national figures.
• Strong trust support and staff wellbeing prioritised, with governors knowing the school well.
• Older pupils value leadership opportunities and care for younger peers.

Areas for Improvement

• Some activities, including phonics, are too complicated and lack sufficient practice for pupils to consolidate learning.
• Disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND are particularly affected by insufficient practice opportunities.
• Behaviour expectations are inconsistent across the school, causing some pupils to lose focus.
• Inconsistent expectations sometimes lead to lost teaching time as staff re-engage pupils.
• Some pupils struggle to develop fluency and confidence in the basics.

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 Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School attended 94.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 7.9% 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, 0.0% of pupils at Lulworth and Winfrith CofE 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 Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School had 17.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 53.8% 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, 28.4% of pupils at Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.2% 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 Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School received £8,437 and spent £7,242 for each of its 120 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £15,000 (£123 per pupil).

Across all 20 schools of Coastal Learning Partnership, income was £6,936 and spending £6,570 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 Wareham · Dorset local authority: places and applications

Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School is part of Coastal Learning Partnership, which runs 20 schools. The nearest others:

• Wool Church of England Primary School Wareham
• Stoborough Church of England Primary School Wareham
• Wareham St Mary Church of England Primary School Wareham
• Corfe Castle Church of England Primary School Wareham
• St George's Church of England Primary School, Langton Matravers Swanage
• Swanage St Mark's Church of England Primary School Swanage
• Swanage Primary School Swanage
• Old Town Infant School and Nursery Poole
• Oakdale Junior School Poole
• Longfleet Church of England Primary School Poole

What is Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School is Good, from an inspection in March 2025.

When was Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School was last inspected in March 2025.

How many pupils does Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School have?

Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School has 95 pupils on roll.

What age range does Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School cover?

Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 38% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School?

Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School is at School Lane, West Lulworth, Wareham, Dorset, BH20 5SA.