Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School
Symondsbury, Bridport, DT6 6HD
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mrs Lisa O'Keefe
- Diocese
- Diocese of Salisbury
- Constituency
- West Dorset
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 112
- Pupils on roll
- 107
- URN
- 113815
- Local authority
- Dorset
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01308423502
About this school
Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is a Church of England voluntary aided primary school in Bridport. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 107 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted did not give an overall grade. Between September 2024 and September 2025 inspections graded each area of a school's work without a single overall judgement, ahead of the move to report cards. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 15 | 16 | 12 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 67% | 38% | 67% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 13% | 0% | 17% |
| Expected standard in reading | 93% | 75% | 83% |
| Expected standard in maths | 80% | 56% | 75% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 73% | 50% | 67% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 109.0 | 103.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 101.0 | 103.0 |
| Reading progress | +3.20 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.30 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.60 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Dorset average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 67% | 53.5% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 38% | 53.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 67% | 54.4% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 104 |
| 2023/24 | 104 |
| 2024/25 | 105 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School compares
Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School ranked 18th of 89 primary schools in Dorset for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 57% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 91% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 67% | 3.7% | 12.4% | 107 | — |
| Bridport, St Mary's Church of England Primary School | 52% | 4.5% | 29.1% | 194 | 1.3 miles |
| St Catherine's Roman Catholic School | 30% | 7.9% | 22% | 100 | 1.5 miles |
| Bridport Primary School | 50% | 5% | 19.8% | 267 | 1.7 miles |
| Salway Ash Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School | 60% | 4.1% | 10% | 109 | 2.8 miles |
| Loders CofE Primary Academy | 50% | 3.6% | 20% | 72 | 3.1 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 12.38%
- English as an additional language
- 1%
- Overall absence
- 3.69%
- Persistent absence
- 3.09%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Bridport, St Mary's Church of England Primary School1.3 miles
Primary · Bridport
-
St Catherine's Roman Catholic School1.5 miles
Primary · Bridport
-
Bridport Primary School1.7 miles
Primary · Bridport
-
Salway Ash Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School2.8 miles
Primary · Bridport
-
Loders CofE Primary Academy3.1 miles
Primary · Bridport
Other schools in Bridport
Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School ranks 1st of the 10 ranked primary schools in Bridport.
- Bridport Primary School Primary
- Bridport, St Mary's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Burton Bradstock Church of England Voluntary Controlled School Primary
- Charmouth Primary School Primary
- Loders CofE Primary Academy Primary
- Marshwood CofE Primary Academy Primary
- Powerstock Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- Salway Ash Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- St Catherine's Roman Catholic School Primary
- The Sir John Colfox Academy Secondary
Common questions
- What year groups does Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School teach?
- Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Bridport.
- Who is the headteacher of Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School?
- The headteacher of Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is Mrs Lisa O'Keefe, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School?
- Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School has 107 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School full?
- Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School has capacity for 112 pupils and 107 on roll (96%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Salisbury.
- Does Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- How have Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 67% in 2022/23 and 67% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School rank locally?
- Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School ranked 18th of 89 primary schools in Dorset for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 57% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 91% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School's absence rate?
- Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School's overall absence rate is 3.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Symondsbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 29 June 2026.