1
Bournemouth School for Girls
Bournemouth • Dorset • BH8 9UJ
1
17 Jun 2024
Top 10 Secondary schools in Dorset
Updated for the latest inspections (median graded year: 2022)
This Top 10 showcases secondary schools in the county 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 secondary schools
38
Outstanding
6
Good
26
Median inspection year
2022
Ofsted grade mix (graded schools)
O: 17% · G: 74% · RI: 9% · I: 0%
2
Bournemouth School
Bournemouth • Dorset • BH8 9PY
1
2 May 2024
3
Glenmoor Academy
Bournemouth • Dorset • BH10 4EX
1
10 Jul 2019
4
Winton Academy
Bournemouth • Dorset • BH10 4HT
1
29 Jan 2019
5
Parkstone Grammar School
Poole • Dorset • BH17 7EP
1
17 Nov 2017
6
The Thomas Hardye School
Dorchester • Dorset • DT1 2ET
1
20 Apr 2015
7
Twynham School
Christchurch • Dorset • BH23 1JF
2
9 Jun 2024
8
The Blandford School
Blandford Forum • Dorset • DT11 7SQ
2
21 May 2024
9
Dorset Studio School
Dorchester • Dorset • DT2 8PX
2
15 May 2024
10
The Woodroffe School
Lyme Regis • Dorset • DT7 3LX
2
28 Jan 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 secondary schools that have a graded Ofsted inspection.
Map of the Top 10
Also highly rated nearby
- The Swanage School 2 • Dec 2023
- Wey Valley Academy 2 • Nov 2023
- Beaminster School 2 • Nov 2023
- Gillingham School 2 • Jul 2023
- Magna Academy 2 • May 2023
- Shaftesbury School 2 • May 2023
- The Bishop of Winchester Academy 2 • May 2023
- The Grange School 2 • Jan 2022
- Corfe Hills School 2 • Oct 2021
- The Bourne Academy 2 • Dec 2019