The Purbeck School
Worgret Road, Wareham, BH20 4PF
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- WESSEX MULTI ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Adam Darley
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- Wessex Multi Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Mid Dorset and North Poole
- Setting
- Larger rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,180
- Pupils on roll
- 1,022
- URN
- 148737
- Local authority
- Dorset
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01929550077
About this school
The Purbeck School is a secondary academy in Wareham. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,022 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected The Purbeck School, and its latest judgement is set out 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's most recent visit was a short inspection on 30 April 2025, where inspectors found the school has improved significantly. 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 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 169 | 173 | 164 |
| Attainment 8 score | 44.2 | 49.9 | 41.9 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.08 -0.14 to +0.29 | +0.60 +0.39 to +0.81 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 38% | 49.7% | 36.6% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 62% | 72.3% | 57.3% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 14% | 22% | 19.5% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.7 | 4.3 | 3.5 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How The Purbeck 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 | 44.2 | 36.6 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 49.9 | 36.8 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 41.9 | 35.5 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 10.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 9.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,064 |
| 2023/24 | 1,040 |
| 2024/25 | 1,028 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How The Purbeck School compares
The Purbeck School ranked 13th of 19 secondary schools in Dorset for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 45% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 21% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 41.9 | 7.5% | 22.5% | 1,022 | — |
| Lytchett Minster School | 46.8 | 7.8% | 19.6% | 1,624 | 4.9 miles |
| The Cornerstone Academy | 41 | 12.2% | 40.8% | 645 | 5.7 miles |
| Poole High School | 51 | 8.8% | 20.6% | 1,891 | 6.7 miles |
| Parkstone Grammar School | 68.5 | 5.1% | 6.9% | 1,241 | 7.4 miles |
| The Swanage School | 36.9 | 11.9% | 33% | 349 | 7.8 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)
- 22.49%
- English as an additional language
- 4.8%
- Overall absence
- 7.47%
- Persistent absence
- 21.72%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Lytchett Minster School4.9 miles
Secondary · Poole
-
The Cornerstone Academy5.7 miles
Secondary · Poole
-
Poole High School6.7 miles
Secondary · Poole
-
Parkstone Grammar School7.4 miles
Secondary · Poole
-
The Swanage School7.8 miles
Secondary · Swanage
Other schools in Wareham
- Bere Regis Primary and Preschool Primary
- Bovington Academy Primary
- Corfe Castle Church of England Primary School Primary
- Lulworth and Winfrith CofE Primary School Primary
- Sandford St Martin's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- St Mary & St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Primary
- Stoborough Church of England Primary School Primary
- Wareham St Mary Church of England Primary School Primary
- Wool Church of England Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does The Purbeck School teach?
- The Purbeck School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Wareham.
- Who is the headteacher of The Purbeck School?
- The headteacher of The Purbeck School is Mr Adam Darley, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has The Purbeck School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The Purbeck 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 The Purbeck School?
- The Purbeck School has 1,022 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is The Purbeck School full?
- The Purbeck School has capacity for 1,180 pupils and 1,022 on roll (87%), 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 The Purbeck School a faith school?
- No. The Purbeck School has no designated religious character.
- Is The Purbeck School a selective school?
- No. The Purbeck School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is The Purbeck School part of an academy trust?
- The Purbeck School is part of WESSEX MULTI ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have The Purbeck School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 44.2 in 2022/23 and 41.9 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does The Purbeck School compare with other schools in Dorset?
- The Purbeck School ranked 13th of 19 secondary schools in Dorset for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 45% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 21% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is The Purbeck School's absence rate?
- The Purbeck School's overall absence rate is 7.5% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are The Purbeck School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, The Purbeck 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.