Primary
St Mary's Church of England Primary School, Bradford Abbas
Mill Lane, Sherborne, DT9 6RH
Key facts
- Phase
- Primary
- Type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Intake
- Mixed
- Pupils
- 90 of 119 places
- Pupils per teacher
- 20.8
- Local authority
- Dorset
- Religious character
- Yes
- Trust
- SHERBORNE AREA SCHOOLS' TRUST
- Diocese
- Diocese of Salisbury
Staffing23/24
- Teachers (FTE)
- 4.5
- All staff (FTE)
- 7.7
- Pupils per adult
- 12.3
- Pupils
- 94
Staff are counted as full-time equivalents in the November school workforce census, so the pupil figure here is that census’s own and will differ a little from the roll above, which is counted in January.
Ofsted
Last inspected May 2026
- AchievementNeeds attention
- Attendance and behaviourExpected standard
- Curriculum and teachingNeeds attention
- Early yearsExpected standard
- InclusionExpected standard
- Leadership and governanceExpected standard
- Personal development and wellbeingExpected standard
SafeguardingMet
Read the full Ofsted report (opens in a new tab)Earlier inspections1
February 2022
Previous framework
Good
Safeguarding: met
- Behaviour and attitudesGood
- Early yearsGood
- Leadership and governanceGood
- Personal developmentGood
- Quality of educationGood
SATs results
44%
9 points below the Sherborne average (53% across 6 schools)
100.0
3.7 below the Sherborne average (103.7 across 6 schools)
6th of 7 by our score, among the primary schools in Sherborne we can score - 9 in total, the rest without enough published data. Local and same-phase on purpose: a national table mostly measures who attends.
All published measures2024/2025
| Measure | Result |
|---|---|
| Average maths score | 98 |
| Average reading score | 100 |
| Reading, writing and maths | 44% |
| Working at a higher standard | 0% |
From the Department for Education. Measures are published per year and suppressed where a cohort is too small, so some schools show fewer. There are no results for 2019/20 or 2020/21, when exams and assessments were cancelled.
Results over time3 years
Each measure on its own scale, over every year we hold.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 22/23 | 50% |
| 23/24 | 58% |
| 24/25 | 44% |
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 22/23 | 104.0 |
| 23/24 | 107.0 |
| 24/25 | 100.0 |
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 22/23 | 102.0 |
| 23/24 | 103.0 |
| 24/25 | 98.0 |
Mill Lane, Sherborne, DT9 6RH
Admissions
How to apply (opens in a new tab)
You apply through your council, not the school - even for academies and free schools. Applications close on 15 January, the year before starting.
Dorset admissions (opens in a new tab)
The council publishes the oversubscription criteria and last year’s offer distances, which is the closest thing to knowing your chances.
If you are refused a place (opens in a new tab)
You can appeal, and you can join a waiting list at the same time. Accept whatever offer you get first - declining it can leave you with no place at all.
This school’s own admissions (opens in a new tab)
Schools that set their own criteria - faith schools, grammars, academies - publish them on their own site.
Contact
- Headteacher
- Ian Bartle
- Address
- Mill Lane, Sherborne, DT9 6RH
- Telephone
- 01935476515