Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School
Winston Avenue, Branksome, Poole, BH12 1PG
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- HAMWIC EDUCATION TRUST
- Head Teacher
- Mr Scott Tait
- Diocese
- Diocese of Salisbury
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Hamwic Education Trust
- Constituency
- Bournemouth West
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 630
- Pupils on roll
- 603
- URN
- 144873
- Local authority
- Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01202715100
About this school
Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School is a Church of England primary academy in Poole. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 603 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out 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 no longer gives schools a single overall grade. Each area of the school's work is graded on a five-point scale, and safeguarding is judged separately.
- Inclusion
- Strong standard
- Curriculum and teaching
- Expected standard
- Achievement
- Expected standard
- Attendance and behaviour
- Strong standard
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Strong standard
- Leadership and governance
- Strong standard
- Early years
- Strong standard
- Safeguarding
- Met
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 87 | 83 | 86 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 56% | 63% | 66% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 11% | 10% | 9% |
| Expected standard in reading | 77% | 75% | 79% |
| Expected standard in maths | 69% | 70% | 79% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 78% | 70% | 77% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 105.0 | 105.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 105.0 | 104.0 | 105.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.70 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.90 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.40 | - | - |
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 Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England 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 | Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 56% | 56.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 63% | 58.1% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 66% | 59% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.8% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 643 |
| 2023/24 | 629 |
| 2024/25 | 626 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School compares
Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School ranked 24th of 52 primary schools in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 55% 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 | 66% | 4.5% | 16.1% | 603 | — |
| Talbot Primary School | 64% | 4.9% | 24.6% | 547 | 0.6 miles |
| St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole | 64% | 6.4% | 19.7% | 370 | 0.7 miles |
| Heatherlands Primary School | 58% | 5% | 30.3% | 616 | 0.8 miles |
| St Mark's Church of England Primary School | 63% | 4.6% | 12.1% | 418 | 0.9 miles |
| Manorside Academy | 58% | 5.5% | 34.6% | 413 | 1.2 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.
Inspection history
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 16.07%
- English as an additional language
- 19.2%
- Overall absence
- 4.48%
- Persistent absence
- 9.47%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Talbot Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Poole
-
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole0.7 miles
Primary · Poole
-
Heatherlands Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Poole
-
St Mark's Church of England Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Bournemouth
-
Manorside Academy1.2 miles
Primary · Poole
Other schools in Poole
Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School ranks 6th of the 18 ranked primary schools in Poole.
- Ad Astra Infant School Primary
- Baden-Powell and St Peter's Church of England Junior School Primary
- Bayside Academy Primary
- Canford Heath Infant School Primary
- Canford Heath Junior School Primary
- Courthill Infant School Primary
- Hamworthy Park Junior School Primary
- Haymoor Junior School Primary
- Heatherlands Primary School Primary
- Hillbourne Primary School Primary
- Lilliput Church of England Infant School Primary
- Livingstone Road Infant School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School teach?
- Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Poole.
- Who is the head teacher of Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School?
- The head teacher of Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School is Mr Scott Tait, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England 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 many pupils are at Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School?
- Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School has 603 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School full?
- Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School has capacity for 630 pupils and 603 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 Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Salisbury.
- Does Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Is Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School part of an academy trust?
- Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School is part of HAMWIC EDUCATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 56% in 2022/23 and 66% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School compare with other schools in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole?
- Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School ranked 24th of 52 primary schools in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 55% 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 Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School's absence rate?
- Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School's overall absence rate is 4.5% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England 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 15 July 2026.