Thornford CofE Primary School
Boot Lane, Thornford, Sherborne, DT9 6QY
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- SHERBORNE AREA SCHOOLS' TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Kirsty Blencowe
- Diocese
- Diocese of Salisbury
- Constituency
- West Dorset
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 105
- Pupils on roll
- 104
- URN
- 144415
- Local authority
- Dorset
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01935872706
About this school
Thornford CofE Primary School is a Church of England primary academy in Sherborne. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 104 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. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person 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 | 14 | 15 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 80% | 64% | 53% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 20% | 21% | 7% |
| Expected standard in reading | 100% | 93% | 67% |
| Expected standard in maths | 100% | 86% | 73% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 93% | 93% | 60% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 110.0 | 110.0 | 104.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 108.0 | 105.0 | 103.0 |
| Reading progress | +2.10 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.20 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +1.20 | - | - |
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 Thornford CofE 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 | 80% | 53.5% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 64% | 53.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 53% | 54.4% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 3.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 100 |
| 2023/24 | 100 |
| 2024/25 | 99 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Thornford CofE Primary School compares
Thornford CofE Primary School ranked 51st of 89 primary schools in Dorset for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 26% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 94% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 53% | 3.5% | 9.1% | 104 | — |
| St Mary's Church of England Primary School, Bradford Abbas | 44% | 4.1% | 6.7% | 90 | 1.3 miles |
| St Andrew's Church of England Primary School | 31% | 5.3% | 20.6% | 99 | 1.6 miles |
| Sherborne Abbey Church of England Primary School | 48% | 5.8% | 22.4% | 336 | 2.1 miles |
| Barwick and Stoford Community Primary School | 9% | 5.5% | 44.6% | 58 | 2.7 miles |
| Pen Mill Infant and Nursery Academy | — | 6.3% | 24.2% | 156 | 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)
- 9.09%
- English as an additional language
- 1%
- Overall absence
- 3.49%
- Persistent absence
- 3.37%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Mary's Church of England Primary School, Bradford Abbas1.3 miles
Primary · Sherborne
-
St Andrew's Church of England Primary School1.6 miles
Primary · Sherborne
-
Sherborne Abbey Church of England Primary School2.1 miles
Primary · Sherborne
-
Barwick and Stoford Community Primary School2.7 miles
Primary · Yeovil
-
Pen Mill Infant and Nursery Academy3.1 miles
Primary · Yeovil
Other schools in Sherborne
Thornford CofE Primary School ranks 2nd of the 6 ranked primary schools in Sherborne.
- All Saints Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Charlton Horethorne Church of England Primary School Primary
- Milborne Port Primary School Primary
- Sherborne Abbey Church of England Primary School Primary
- Sherborne Primary School Primary
- St Andrew's Church of England Primary School Primary
- St Mary's Church of England Primary School, Bradford Abbas Primary
- Trent Young's CofE Primary School Primary
- The Gryphon School Secondary
- Harbour Vale School Academies
- Leweston School Independent schools
- Sherborne Preparatory School Independent schools
Common questions
- What year groups does Thornford CofE Primary School teach?
- Thornford CofE Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Sherborne.
- Who is the headteacher of Thornford CofE Primary School?
- The headteacher of Thornford CofE Primary School is Mrs Kirsty Blencowe, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Thornford CofE Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Thornford CofE 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 Thornford CofE Primary School?
- Thornford CofE Primary School has 104 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Thornford CofE Primary School full?
- Thornford CofE Primary School has capacity for 105 pupils and 104 on roll (99%), 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 Thornford CofE Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. Thornford CofE Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Salisbury.
- Does Thornford CofE Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Thornford CofE Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- Who runs Thornford CofE Primary School?
- Thornford CofE Primary School is part of SHERBORNE AREA SCHOOLS' TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Thornford CofE Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 80% in 2022/23 and 53% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Thornford CofE Primary School rank locally?
- Thornford CofE Primary School ranked 51st of 89 primary schools in Dorset for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 26% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 94% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Thornford CofE Primary School's absence rate?
- Thornford CofE Primary School's overall absence rate is 3.5% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Thornford CofE Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Thornford CofE 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 10 July 2026.