Poundbury & Dorchester West (E02007007) is part of Dorset local authority (view on map). Poundbury & Dorchester West has an approximate population of 6,800 people, of which 17% are children 15 years old and under. It is classified as "urban: further from a major town or city".
Poundbury & Dorchester West neighbours Charlton Down, Cerne Abbas & Puddletown, Dorchester East, Owermoigne, Broadmayne & Winterbourne, and Dorchester North.
Local area pages are based on the middle-layer super output areas (MSOAs) distributed across the country. MSOAs comprise between 2,000 and 6,000 households and have a resident population of, generally, between 5,000 and 15,000 people. MSOAs fit within local authorities. For each area, descriptive statistics are compared with local authority and national averages. For more information about MSOAs, please visit the Office for National Statistics website.
The data displayed is sourced from:
Poundbury & Dorchester West is the 31st least deprived area in Dorset (out of 48) with 32% of children living in low-income families, compared to 29% across Dorset and 38% nationally.
Information acquired from the school census.
In Poundbury & Dorchester West, 23% of state-funded pupils are eligible for free school meals, compared to 21% in Dorset and 27% nationally.
| % in Poundbury & Dorchester West | % in Dorset | % in England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eligible for free school meals | 23% | 21% | 27% |
| Not eligible for free school meals | 77% | 79% | 73% |
In Poundbury & Dorchester West, 27% of pupils in state-funded settings have special educational needs (SEN), compared to 23% in Dorset, and 21% nationally.
This includes the number of pupils with an education, health and care (EHC) plan and the number of pupils with SEN support.
| % in Poundbury & Dorchester West | % in Dorset | % in England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No special educational needs | 73% | 77% | 79% |
| Receiving special educational needs support | 18% | 17% | 15% |
| With an education, health, and care plan (EHCP) | 9% | 6% | 6% |
In Poundbury & Dorchester West, 18% of pupils are from a minority ethnic background, compared to 8% in Dorset, and 33% nationally.
Percentages may not sum to 100%, due to small values being suppressed.
| % in Poundbury & Dorchester West | % in Dorset | % in England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 81% | 92% | 67% |
| Asian | 10% | 2% | 14% |
| Black | 2% | 1% | 7% |
| Mixed | 5% | 3% | 7% |
| Other | – | 1% | 3% |
| Not known | – | 1% | 2% |
The percentage of pupils in Poundbury & Dorchester West with English as an additional language is 12%, compared with 6% in Dorset, and 22% nationally.
Numbers may not sum to 100%, due to a small number of pupils with an unclassified language.
| % in Poundbury & Dorchester West | % in Dorset | % in England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Known or believed to be other than English | 12% | 6% | 22% |
| Known or believed to be English | 88% | 94% | 78% |
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Poundbury & Dorchester West has 5 registered childcare providers.
| Type | Number in Poundbury & Dorchester West |
|---|---|
| All childcare providers | 5 |
| Childminders | 2 |
| Pre-school/day nursery/out-of-school care | 3 |
There have been no inspections of childcare providers in Poundbury & Dorchester West since the introduction of the renewed education inspection framework in November 2025.
Poundbury & Dorchester West has 3 state-funded schools.
| Type | Number in Poundbury & Dorchester West |
|---|---|
| All state-funded schools | 3 |
| Nursery schools | 0 |
| Primary and all-through schools | 1 |
| Secondary and all-through schools | 2 |
| Special schools | 0 |
| Registered alternative provision | 0 |
In Poundbury & Dorchester West, there has been 1 full inspection of schools since the introduction of the renewed education inspection framework in November 2025.
Under the renewed education inspection framework, schools are evaluated on the following areas:
The evaluation scale for each evaluation area, other than safeguarding, is:
Achievement: 1 was graded 'needs attention' (of 1).
Attendance and behaviour: 1 was graded 'strong standard' (of 1).
Curriculum and teaching: 1 was graded 'expected standard' (of 1).
Early years: There have been no inspections of Early years in Poundbury & Dorchester West so no outcomes are available for this area.
Inclusion: 1 was graded 'expected standard' (of 1).
Leadership and governance: 1 was graded 'expected standard' (of 1).
Personal development and wellbeing: 1 was graded 'expected standard' (of 1).
Post-16 provision: There have been no inspections of Post-16 provision in Poundbury & Dorchester West so no outcomes are available for this area.
The tables below show the outcomes of inspections of state-funded schools in Poundbury & Dorchester West. The tables are split by provider type, and show the number of inspections that have taken place for each area, and the outcomes of those inspections.
| Number of inspections | Exceptional | Strong standard | Expected standard | Needs attention | Urgent improvement | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Achievement | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Attendance and behaviour | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Curriculum and teaching | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Early years | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Inclusion | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Leadership and governance | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Personal development and wellbeing | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Post-16 provision | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Number of inspections | Exceptional | Strong standard | Expected standard | Needs attention | Urgent improvement | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Achievement | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Attendance and behaviour | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Curriculum and teaching | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Early years | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Inclusion | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Leadership and governance | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Personal development and wellbeing | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Post-16 provision | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Number of inspections | Exceptional | Strong standard | Expected standard | Needs attention | Urgent improvement | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Achievement | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Attendance and behaviour | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Curriculum and teaching | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Early years | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Inclusion | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Leadership and governance | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Personal development and wellbeing | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Post-16 provision | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Number of inspections | Exceptional | Strong standard | Expected standard | Needs attention | Urgent improvement | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Achievement | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Attendance and behaviour | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Curriculum and teaching | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Early years | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Inclusion | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Leadership and governance | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Personal development and wellbeing | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Post-16 provision | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Number of inspections | Exceptional | Strong standard | Expected standard | Needs attention | Urgent improvement | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Achievement | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Attendance and behaviour | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Curriculum and teaching | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Early years | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Inclusion | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Leadership and governance | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Personal development and wellbeing | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Post-16 provision | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Number of inspections | Exceptional | Strong standard | Expected standard | Needs attention | Urgent improvement | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Achievement | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Attendance and behaviour | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Curriculum and teaching | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Early years | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Inclusion | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Leadership and governance | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Personal development and wellbeing | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Post-16 provision | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Data sources: