St James Church of England First School

About St James Church of England First School

St James Church of England First School is a state primary in Dorset, one of 119 schools of its type in the local authority. It serves children from age 2 to 9 and is currently rated Good by Ofsted, following a graded inspection in February 2025. The school sits within a competitive local landscape: its top-performing peers in the area include Spetisbury CofE Primary School, St Ives Primary & Nursery School, and Sticklands Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School. With 138 pupils on roll against a capacity of 125, the school is clearly in demand. For the 2025/26 admissions cycle, it received 54 total applications for just 24 places, with 35 of those as first preferences, giving an oversubscription ratio of 2.25. That means for every place available, more than two families wanted it, which tells you something about its reputation locally. The school has a Church of England religious character and is led by headteacher Daniel Lawford.

Academically, the school’s most recent Ofsted inspection rated it Good across all five key areas: quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. This is a notable shift from its previous inspection in 2014, when it was judged Outstanding overall. The school’s parent view survey, based on 80 responses collected between September 2024 and September 2025, shows strong satisfaction: 94% of parents would recommend the school. In terms of specific metrics, 76% strongly agreed that their child is happy, 78% strongly agreed their child feels safe, and 79% strongly agreed their child does well. The school’s percentage of pupils eligible for free school meals is 6.3, which is relatively low. While the data does not include KS2 SATs results or a Progress 8 score, the local authority average for KS2 attainment is 56, and the school’s Good rating suggests it is performing solidly within that context.

The school offers a range of facilities including a dining hall, library, outdoor playground, playing fields, sports hall, art studios, and a chapel. Sports on offer include swimming, dance, cricket, netball, athletics, and tennis, while clubs cover choir, drama, and coding. There is nursery provision for the youngest children, and the school has identified SEND support for specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, and hearing impairment. The parent view data on SEND support was not answered by any respondents, so it is hard to gauge parental opinion on that front. With its oversubscribed status and strong parent satisfaction, this school is likely to suit families who value a Church of England ethos, a broad range of activities, and a smaller, community-focused setting. Given the competition for places, early application is advisable.

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