1
St Ives Primary & Nursery School
Ringwood • Hampshire • BH24 2LE
1
31 Jan 2024
Top 10 Primary schools in Dorset
Updated for the latest inspections (median graded year: 2022)
This Top 10 showcases primary schools in the local authority of Dorset. It’s built from the latest graded Ofsted inspections. We rank Outstanding (grade 1) above Good (grade 2), then prioritise newer inspections. As tie-breakers, we consider the “Quality of education” sub-judgement (where available), then %FSM and school size.
Total primary schools
119
Outstanding
7
Good
87
Median inspection year
2022
Ofsted grade mix (graded schools)
O: 6% · G: 77% · RI: 15% · I: 2%
2
Rushcombe First School
Wimborne • Dorset • BH21 3PX
1
30 Jan 2023
3
St Nicholas and St Laurence Church of England Primary School
Weymouth • Dorset • DT3 5DQ
1
25 Jun 2015
4
Trinity Church of England First School
Verwood • Dorset • BH31 7PG
1
3 Mar 2014
5
St James Church of England First School
Wimborne • Dorset • BH21 4JN
1
27 Feb 2014
6
Hampreston Church of England Voluntary Aided First School
Wimborne • Dorset • BH21 7LX
1
24 May 2013
7
St George's Church of England School, Bourton
Gillingham • Dorset • SP8 5BN
1
11 Mar 2013
8
Wimborne First School and Nursery
Wimborne • Dorset • BH21 4FW
2
9 Sep 2024
9
Bridport, St Mary's Church of England Primary School
Bridport • Dorset • DT6 5LA
2
18 Jul 2024
10
Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School
Dorchester • Dorset • DT2 0AX
2
12 May 2024
How we rank these schools
- Headline Ofsted grade: Outstanding (1) outranks Good (2), then RI (3), then Inadequate (4).
- More recent graded inspection dates rank higher.
- Where available, we use the Quality of education sub-judgement as a tie-breaker.
- Lower free school meals (%) may break remaining ties.
- Larger roll (pupil count) is a final tie-breaker.
Only the ten highest-ranked schools are shown; we also list “near misses” just below.
About Ofsted grades
- Outstanding (1): Highest judgement across key areas.
- Good (2): Strong effectiveness; meets standards consistently.
- Requires improvement (3): Not yet good; clear areas to improve.
- Inadequate (4): Significant weaknesses found.
Ungraded Section 8 visits check whether the previous graded judgement still stands, but they don’t replace it.
Data freshness & coverage
We refresh inspections and school snapshots regularly. If a school was inspected very recently, its report may not yet appear here.
Top-10 pages only appear for areas with at least 10 primary schools that have a graded Ofsted inspection.
Map of the Top 10
Also highly rated nearby
- St John's Church of England Primary School 2 • May 2024
- Holy Trinity Church of England VC Primary School & Community Nursery 2 • May 2024
- St Augustine's Catholic Primary School, Weymouth 2 • May 2024
- Hayeswood First School 2 • Jan 2024
- Henbury View First School 2 • Jan 2024
- Piddle Valley Church of England First School 2 • Jan 2024
- Corfe Castle Church of England Primary School 2 • Dec 2023
- Shillingstone Church of England Primary School 2 • Dec 2023
- Cranborne Church of England First School 2 • Dec 2023
- Bovington Academy 2 • Nov 2023