St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Swanage

About St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Swanage

St Mary's Catholic Primary School in Swanage sits within the Dorset local authority, where it ranks 10th out of 68 primary schools on the key stage 2 expected standard measure, placing it comfortably in the top quarter of schools in the area. Among its closest peers in the local rankings are Spetisbury CofE Primary School, St Ives Primary & Nursery School, and Sticklands Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, all of which score higher on the same metric. The school is a state-funded Roman Catholic primary for mixed-gender pupils aged 4 to 11, with a current roll of 180 children against a capacity of 210. Just under a fifth of its pupils are eligible for free school meals, a figure that sits at 19.4 per cent. The headteacher is Alan Frame, who leads a school that has seen a notable turnaround in its most recent Ofsted inspection, improving from a Requires Improvement rating in 2018 to a solid Good across all categories in June 2022.

Academically, St Mary's performs well above the Dorset local authority average for key stage 2. While the LA average for pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined sits at 56 per cent, the school achieves 75 per cent. In individual subjects, 86 per cent of pupils met the expected standard in maths, 82 per cent in writing, and 79 per cent in reading. At the higher standard, 11 per cent of pupils reached the higher benchmark across all three subjects, with maths again leading at 39 per cent. Average scaled scores were 108 in maths and 107 in reading, both above the national baseline of 100. Progress scores are not available in the data, but the school’s overall ranking reflects strong outcomes: it is placed 229th out of 1,469 primary schools in the South West region and 2,717th nationally out of 13,686, placing it in the top 20 per cent of schools across England.

The school offers a range of facilities including a library, ICT suite, art studios, sports hall, gymnasium, chapel, and an outdoor playground. Sports provision covers rounders, gymnastics, tennis, cross country, dance, athletics, and swimming, while extracurricular clubs include gardening, film club, drama, choir, chess, and eco club. St Mary's has a dedicated SEND department that supports pupils with specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, and hearing impairment. For the 2025/26 intake, the school was oversubscribed: it received 36 applications for 20 places, with all 20 first-preference applicants offered a spot, giving an oversubscription ratio of 1.8. This is a school that suits families seeking a faith-based primary with strong academic results, a broad range of activities, and a clear commitment to inclusive support, though competition for places is evident.

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