Portesham Church of England Primary School
Winters Close, Portesham, Weymouth, DT3 4HP
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- THE FIRST FEDERATION TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Vicky Prior
- Diocese
- Diocese of Salisbury
- Sponsor
- The First Federation Trust
- Constituency
- West Dorset
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 105
- Pupils on roll
- 46
- URN
- 149143
- Local authority
- Dorset
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01305871283
About this school
Portesham Church of England Primary School is a Church of England primary academy in Weymouth. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 46 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Portesham 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 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
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- 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 | 13 | 3 | 8 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 38% | - | 38% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 23% | - | 13% |
| Expected standard in reading | 54% | - | 50% |
| Expected standard in maths | 54% | - | 75% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 77% | - | 63% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 105.0 | - | 103.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 103.0 | - | 109.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.00 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.40 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -2.50 | - | - |
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 Portesham 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 | Dorset average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 38% | 53.5% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | — | 53.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 38% | 54.4% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 13.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 70 |
| 2023/24 | 60 |
| 2024/25 | 57 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Portesham Church of England Primary School compares
Portesham Church of England Primary School ranked 86th of 89 primary schools in Dorset 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 2% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 38% | 13.9% | 26.3% | 46 | — |
| Winterbourne Valley Church of England Aided First School | — | 4.3% | 4.6% | 60 | 3.1 miles |
| Chickerell Primary Academy | 52% | 6% | 25.2% | 420 | 4.3 miles |
| Thorner's Church of England School, Litton Cheney | 73% | 4.1% | 10.7% | 115 | 4.3 miles |
| St Nicholas and St Laurence Church of England Primary School | 67% | 4.1% | 17.8% | 213 | 4.4 miles |
| Radipole Primary School | 60% | 5.4% | 13.6% | 437 | 4.7 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)
- 26.32%
- English as an additional language
- 31.6%
- Overall absence
- 13.88%
- Persistent absence
- 40.79%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Winterbourne Valley Church of England Aided First School3.1 miles
Primary · Dorchester
-
Chickerell Primary Academy4.3 miles
Primary · Weymouth
-
Thorner's Church of England School, Litton Cheney4.3 miles
Primary · Dorchester
-
St Nicholas and St Laurence Church of England Primary School4.4 miles
Primary · Weymouth
-
Radipole Primary School4.7 miles
Primary · Weymouth
Other schools in Weymouth
Portesham Church of England Primary School ranks 13th of the 13 ranked primary schools in Weymouth.
- Beechcroft St Paul's CofE Primary School Primary
- Bincombe Valley Primary School Primary
- Chickerell Primary Academy Primary
- Conifers Primary School Primary
- Holy Trinity Church of England VC Primary School & Community Nursery Primary
- Radipole Primary School Primary
- Southill Primary School Primary
- St Andrew's Church of England Primary School Primary
- St Augustine's Catholic Primary School, Weymouth Primary
- St John's Church of England Primary School Primary
- St Nicholas and St Laurence Church of England Primary School Primary
- Wyke Regis Church of England Junior School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Portesham Church of England Primary School teach?
- Portesham Church of England Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Weymouth.
- Who is the headteacher of Portesham Church of England Primary School?
- The headteacher of Portesham Church of England Primary School is Mrs Vicky Prior, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Portesham Church of England Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Portesham 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 Portesham Church of England Primary School?
- Portesham Church of England Primary School has 46 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Portesham Church of England Primary School full?
- Portesham Church of England Primary School has capacity for 105 pupils and 46 on roll (44%), 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 Portesham Church of England Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. Portesham Church of England Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Salisbury.
- Does Portesham Church of England Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Portesham Church of England Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- Is Portesham Church of England Primary School part of an academy trust?
- Portesham Church of England Primary School is part of THE FIRST FEDERATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Portesham 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 38% 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 Portesham Church of England Primary School compare with other schools in Dorset?
- Portesham Church of England Primary School ranked 86th of 89 primary schools in Dorset 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 2% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Portesham Church of England Primary School's absence rate?
- Portesham Church of England Primary School's overall absence rate is 13.9% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Portesham Church of England Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Portesham 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 10 July 2026.