Damers First School
Primary · Academy converter · Ages 4–9 · Dorchester, Dorset
Last distance offered · Reception 2024
2.571 miles
Published by Dorset Council · offers on 16 April 2024
2017–2023 trend 🔒
Nearby schools' earlier years 🔒
Damers First School is a primary school in Dorchester, Dorset for ages 4–9 (academy converter). Its latest Ofsted outcome is Standards maintained, from the inspection on 12 February 2025. Dorset has published a last distance offered for this school for Reception 2017 to 2024 entry.
Damers First School catchment area: last distance offered
Parents often call this the catchment area: it's how far from the school the last child offered a place lived. It changes every year.
| Entry | Last distance offered |
|---|---|
| Reception 2024 | 2.571 mi |
| Reception 2023 | 🔒 With a pass |
| Reception 2021 | 🔒 With a pass |
| Reception 2020 | 🔒 With a pass |
| Reception 2017 | 🔒 With a pass |
What the pass includes · How to read it: one past year, not a catchment
What the figures show
- In Reception 2024 the last child offered a place lived 2.571 miles away, the 2nd longest of the 7 Dorset primary schools with a published Reception 2024 last distance.
- That 2024 Reception distance was further from the school than in 2017, and the figure swung sharply between some years, most of all from 2020 to 2021.
- For Reception 2026 there were 68 first-choice applications for 75 offers; every first-choice family was offered a place, and 7 offers went to families who ranked it second or lower.
- Free school meal eligibility stands at 19.2% of pupils, against a middle figure of 13.3% across the 8 nearest primary schools in Dorset.
Worked out by Catchmently from the published figures on this page and those for other Dorset schools. Distances are as published; how they were measured differs between admission authorities.
Key facts
- Address
- Liscombe Street, Poundbury, Dorchester, DT1 3DF
- Type
- Academy converter
- Phase
- Primary
- Ages
- 4–9
- Council
- Dorset
- Pupils on roll
- 475 January 2026 school census
- Free school meals
- 19.2% of pupils eligible
- Pupils per teacher
- 21.5
Official record: Get Information about Schools · as at 15 September 2026
Ofsted
Standards maintained Inspected 12 February 2025
Strengths
- “The Damers way of being, ‘brave, unique, caring and kind’, is the heartbeat of this inclusive school.”
- “Pupils know how this vision, alongside the school values, makes the school a happy place to be.”
- “Pupils enjoy coming to Damers and this is reflected in their high attendance.”
To improve
- “However, on some occasions, these checks do not always identify where pupils have not secured important knowledge, such as accuracy of letter formation.”
- “These checks do not always lead to adjustments in the curriculum.”
- “As a result, some pupils build their knowledge less securely.”
Safeguarding: Effective
Quoted from the Ofsted report published 11 March 2025 (read the report). Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0.
Applications and offers
- 2026 Reception entry: 68 first-preference applications, 75 offers in total, 68 offers to first-preference applicants.
Department for Education, school-level applications and offers, figures on national offer day. Earlier years are in the pass.
Nearby primary schools
Straight-line distance, in Dorset.
- The Prince of Wales School 0.8 mi Not judged Last distance published
- St Mary's Church of England First School, Charminster 1.2 mi No Ofsted grade Last distance published
- St Mary's Catholic First School, Dorchester 1.5 mi School remains Good Last distance published
- Manor Park Church of England First School 1.6 mi No Ofsted grade Last distance published
- Winterbourne Valley Church of England Aided First School 3.4 mi No Ofsted grade Last distance published
- Broadmayne First School and Nursery 4.2 mi Good Last distance published
- Bincombe Valley Primary School 4.9 mi No Ofsted grade Last distance published
- St Nicholas and St Laurence Church of England Primary School 5.0 mi Not judged Last distance published