School Chooser

Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School

Primary · ages 4-11MixedChurch of England137 pupilsDorchesterDorset
School Chooser Score
32
Below
similar schools
Likely range 14 to 60, so it could be “in line”
Out of 100. Better than 40% of the 50 schools most like it. Much the same over the last five years.
OfstedGoodLast Ofsted inspection, March 2024
Reached the expected level at 1163%England 63%
Attendance92.9%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families20%A bit fewer than most schools
Places13 spare137 pupils, 150 places
Pupils per teacher19.4School workforce census

Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School is a Church of England school (voluntary controlled) in Dorchester for boys and girls aged 4 to 11. It has 137 pupils and room for 150. About 20 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, a bit fewer than at most schools. We give it 32 out of 100. That puts it below schools like it, ahead of 40% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2024.

Chilfrome Lane, Maiden Newton, Dorchester, DT2 0AX01300 320644greenford.dorset.sch.ukMr Matt Edwards headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 20 March 2024, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall.

TeachingOfsted calls this “quality of education”
Good
BehaviourOfsted calls this “behaviour and attitudes”
Good
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development”
Good
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Good
Early years
Good
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

19 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England. With a year group this small, a couple of children can move the percentages a long way.

Reached the expected level at 1163%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level0%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score107.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score104.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 76%76%20172018: 67%67%20182019: 64%64%20192023: 55%55%20232024: 60%60%20242025: 63%63%2025
Since 2017: -13%Steady overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017DorsetEngland
Pupils tested192020221817
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths63%60%55%64%67%76%57%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths0%10%5%9%6%0%7%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score107.0106.0105.0106.0108.0107.0104.8105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score104.0102.0101.0102.0104.0107.0103.3104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score108.0107.0103.0107.0106.0107.0104.0105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard79%65%80%77%83%94%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard63%65%65%73%72%94%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)79%70%60%86%83%76%
Reading progressReading progress score+0.9+0.3+1.2-0.5
Maths progressMaths progress score-2.7-4.0-2.5+0.7
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged17%29%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged79%69%

There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.

Does every child do well here?

A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. None of the gaps is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.

At the end of primary school, 2025

Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
75%55%
Gap 20 ptsEngland 5 pts
First groupSecond groupEngland, each group

Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published. As a Church of England school it may put families of that faith first. Check the school's own admissions rules.

Plenty of spare places148 pupils for 175 places, 2024/25
85% full

27 places were empty (15% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have stayed about the same since 2021/22.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Dorset council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.

Pupils on roll137Census January 2026
Places15091% full
Pupils from low-income families20%20% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English3%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support29%40 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan4%5 pupils with a plan
Average class size22.86 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils0%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)22%£48,050 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls72 / 65
White British pupils91%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 17.0 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 26.7 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (20), emotional and mental health (13), Specific learning difficulty (7), Hearing impairment (2), Physical disability (2), Autistic spectrum disorder (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll137148143142150146
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals20%24%25%25%21%21%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language3%2%4%3%2%1%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support30%24%26%18%15%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans4%2%3%4%4%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 92.9% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance92.9%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school12.5%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils0.72024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission0.9%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence7.1%5.9%5.9%4.6%2.8%4.7%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence6.1%4.8%4.7%3.8%2.1%3.5%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence0.9%1.1%1.2%0.8%0.7%1.1%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence12.5%12.9%14.5%7.7%5.4%11.3%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate0.74.96.31.33.4
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers7.1full-time equivalent, 8 people
Pupils per teacher19.4Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants6.9full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£53,811
Teachers who left in the year0%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher1.12024/25

Money

From the council school accounts, year to March 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£7,010England £7,738. Total £1.0m
Income per pupil£6,498England £7,697. Total £962k
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,615England £3,480
Money in reserve-10%In the red: -£95k, -£644 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out-£76kit spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£7,010spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m1312 months to June 2026, mostly other theft
Local crime rate29 per 1,000 people68% lower than the England average
Typical house price£345,000Dorset
Nearest bus stop80 mGreenford Primary School, 7 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest primary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Sticklands Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary SchoolChurch of England4.3 miles70No overall grade 202451Compare
Cerne Abbas CofE VC First SchoolChurch of England4.8 miles77Good 202377Compare
Winterbourne Valley Church of England Aided First SchoolChurch of England4.9 miles60Report card 202619Compare
Powerstock Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary SchoolChurch of England5.0 miles33Requires improvement 202412Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School with the 47 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 47 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats40%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the lower half of its group. Its score of 32 is 6 points below the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 0 · middle 38 · highest 98100

Nearby schools with a similar mix of pupils that score higher

Of those 47 schools, these are within 25 km and score at least five points more than Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School, nearest first. A school with the same kind of pupils and a higher score is the fairest sign that it gets more out of them.

SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Parrett and Axe Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary SchoolChurch of England9.7 miles132Good 202260Compare
Hazelbury Bryan Primary SchoolCouncil11.8 miles114Good 202358Compare

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 32 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 32% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 14 to 60. That range is wide enough that the school could sit in the next band, so take the band as a rough guide rather than a verdict. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.

What we looked atHow much it countsAgainst schools like itEffect on the scoreBased on
Results over three years25%in line
-0.06
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 19 pupils
Ofsted inspection20%in line
+0.01
Ofsted grade, 2.5 years old
Progress pupils make20%below
-0.10
DfE progress measure; 19 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%in line
-0.01
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%below
-0.05
2024/25; 128 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%in line
-0.02
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 19 pupils
What parents say0%no data

Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.

Questions parents ask

Is Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School a good school?

The figures are weak. Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School scores 32 out of 100. That is below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 40% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 14 to 60, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.

What is Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School good at its last full inspection on 20 March 2024.

How good are Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 63% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 0% went further and reached the higher level. The year group was small, so the percentages jump around a lot from year to year.

How many pupils does Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School have?

137 pupils aged 4 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 150 places, so it is 91% full.

Is Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School oversubscribed?

Probably not. 27 places were empty in 2024/25 (15% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School?

Pupils were in school 92.9% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 13% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Maiden Newton, Greenford Church of England Primary School?

The average class had 22.8 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. No class had more than 30 pupils.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
Chilfrome Lane, Maiden Newton, Dorchester, DT2 0AX
Telephone
01300 320644
Website
www.greenford.dorset.sch.uk
Headteacher
Mr Matt Edwards
Type of school
Church of England school (voluntary controlled) (Voluntary controlled school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 4-11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England, Diocese of Salisbury
Local authority
Dorset
Ward
Eggardon
Constituency
West Dorset
Setting
Larger rural: Further from a major town or city
URN
113762 · LAESTAB 8383021 · UKPRN 10073813

Where these figures come from