Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School
Queen Street, Dorchester, Wallingford, OX10 7HR
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary controlled school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mrs Joanna Staples
- Diocese
- Diocese of Oxford
- Constituency
- Henley and Thame
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 105
- Pupils on roll
- 76
- URN
- 123129
- Local authority
- Oxfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01865340081
About this school
Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School is a Church of England voluntary controlled primary school in Wallingford. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 76 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's most recent visit was a short inspection on 1 April 2025, where inspectors found some aspects are not as strong as at the previous inspection. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 7 | 13 | 8 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 57% | 31% | 38% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 71% | 62% | 63% |
| Expected standard in maths | 71% | 31% | 38% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 86% | 38% | 50% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 102.0 | 101.0 | 102.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 100.0 | 96.0 | 97.0 |
| Reading progress | -3.40 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.10 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -4.80 | - | - |
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 Dorchester St Birinus Church of England 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 | Oxfordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 57% | 58.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 31% | 59.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 38% | 60.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 68 |
| 2023/24 | 70 |
| 2024/25 | 75 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School compares
Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School ranked 216th of 228 primary schools in Oxfordshire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 10% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 74% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 38% | 4.4% | 8% | 76 | — |
| Abbey Woods Academy | 70% | 8.1% | 42% | 138 | 1.1 miles |
| St Laurence Church of England School | 73% | 3.8% | 12.1% | 89 | 1.4 miles |
| Long Wittenham (Church of England) Primary School | 63% | 4.7% | 11.8% | 66 | 2.0 miles |
| Brightwell-Cum-Sotwell Church of England Primary School | 48% | 4.1% | 9.7% | 163 | 2.1 miles |
| Clifton Hampden Church of England Primary School | 64% | 4.8% | 4.4% | 80 | 2.1 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)
- 8%
- English as an additional language
- 16%
- Overall absence
- 4.42%
- Persistent absence
- 11.11%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Abbey Woods Academy1.1 miles
Primary · Wallingford
-
St Laurence Church of England School1.4 miles
Primary · Wallingford
-
Long Wittenham (Church of England) Primary School2.0 miles
Primary · Abingdon
-
Brightwell-Cum-Sotwell Church of England Primary School2.1 miles
Primary · Wallingford
-
Clifton Hampden Church of England Primary School2.1 miles
Primary · Abingdon
Other schools in Wallingford
Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School ranks 10th of the 11 ranked primary schools in Wallingford.
- Abbey Woods Academy Primary
- Benson Church of England Primary School Primary
- Brightwell-Cum-Sotwell Church of England Primary School Primary
- Cholsey Primary School Primary
- Crowmarsh Gifford Church of England School Primary
- Ewelme CofE Primary School Primary
- Fir Tree Junior School Primary
- RAF Benson Community Primary School Primary
- St John's Primary School Primary
- St Laurence Church of England School Primary
- St Nicholas' Church of England Infants' School and Nursery Class, Wallingford Primary
- Wallingford School Secondary
Common questions
- What year groups does Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School teach?
- Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Wallingford.
- Who is the headteacher of Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School?
- The headteacher of Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School is Mrs Joanna Staples, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Dorchester St Birinus Church of England 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 Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School?
- Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School has 76 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School full?
- Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School has capacity for 105 pupils and 76 on roll (72%), so it has space against its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School a faith school?
- Yes. Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Oxford.
- Does Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School as having no nursery classes.
- How have Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 57% in 2022/23 and 38% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School rank locally?
- Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School ranked 216th of 228 primary schools in Oxfordshire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 10% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 74% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School's absence rate?
- Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School's overall absence rate is 4.4% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Dorchester St Birinus Church of England School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Dorchester St Birinus Church of England 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 30 June 2026.