St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford
Station Road, Child Okeford, Blandford Forum, DT11 8EL
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- SHERBORNE AREA SCHOOLS' TRUST
- Headteacher
- Ms Jill Watson
- Diocese
- Diocese of Salisbury
- Constituency
- North Dorset
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 175
- Pupils on roll
- 125
- URN
- 149656
- Local authority
- Dorset
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01258860581
About this school
St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford is a Church of England primary academy in Blandford Forum. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 125 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford, 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 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
- Needs attention
- Curriculum and teaching
- Needs attention
- Achievement
- Needs attention
- Attendance and behaviour
- Expected standard
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Expected standard
- Leadership and governance
- Needs attention
- Early years
- Urgent improvement
- Safeguarding
- Met
Ofsted placed the school in a category of concern: requires significant improvement.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 14 | 21 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 36% | 43% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 64% | 71% |
| Expected standard in maths | 36% | 57% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 64% | 67% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 100.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 98.0 | 101.0 |
Trends over time
How St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford 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 | — | 53.5% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 36% | 53.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 43% | 54.4% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | — | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2023/24 | 140 |
| 2024/25 | 133 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford compares
St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford ranked 80th of 89 primary schools in Dorset for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 14% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 45% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 43% | 5.7% | 16.5% | 125 | — |
| Shillingstone Church of England Primary School | 67% | 3.5% | 23.3% | 103 | 1.1 miles |
| Durweston Church of England Primary School | 80% | 6.8% | 10.6% | 144 | 2.8 miles |
| William Barnes Primary School | 55% | 5.1% | 24.1% | 162 | 3.1 miles |
| St Andrew's Church of England Primary School | — | 6.1% | 23.5% | 101 | 3.5 miles |
| Milldown CofE Academy | 48% | 6.2% | 23.2% | 200 | 4.4 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)
- 16.54%
- English as an additional language
- 5.3%
- Overall absence
- 5.69%
- Persistent absence
- 13.11%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Shillingstone Church of England Primary School1.1 miles
Primary · Blandford Forum
-
Durweston Church of England Primary School2.8 miles
Primary · Blandford Forum
-
William Barnes Primary School3.1 miles
Primary · Sturminster Newton
-
St Andrew's Church of England Primary School3.5 miles
Primary · Shaftesbury
-
Milldown CofE Academy4.4 miles
Primary · Blandford Forum
Other schools in Blandford Forum
St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford ranks 8th of the 9 ranked primary schools in Blandford Forum.
- Archbishop Wake Church of England Primary School Primary
- Blandford St Mary Church of England Primary School Primary
- Downlands Community School Primary
- Durweston Church of England Primary School Primary
- Milborne St Andrew First School Primary
- Milldown CofE Academy Primary
- Pimperne Church of England VC Primary School Primary
- Shillingstone Church of England Primary School Primary
- Spetisbury CofE Primary School Primary
- The Blandford School Secondary
- The Forum Centre Local authority maintained schools
- The Forum School Special schools
Common questions
- What ages does St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford teach?
- St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Blandford Forum.
- Who is the headteacher of St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford?
- The headteacher of St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford is Ms Jill Watson, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford, 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 St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford?
- St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford has 125 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford full?
- St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford has capacity for 175 pupils and 125 on roll (71%), 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 St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford a faith school?
- Yes. St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Salisbury.
- Does St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford as having no nursery classes.
- Is St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford part of an academy trust?
- St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford 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 St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 36% in 2023/24 and 43% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford compare with other schools in Dorset?
- St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford ranked 80th of 89 primary schools in Dorset for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 14% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 45% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford's absence rate?
- St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford's overall absence rate is 5.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Nicholas Church of England Primary School, Child Okeford'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.