Schools in Gillingham
Gillingham is a small market town in the Blackmore Vale, and its 43 schools cover a broad rural area across north Dorset - taking in Shaftesbury, Mere, Sturminster Newton, Stalbridge and the surrounding villages. Dorset Council coordinates all maintained school admissions in this area and publishes catchment boundary maps annually.
Gillingham School is the main secondary for the town, drawing from a large rural catchment. Oversubscription resolves on distance; families in the outer villages should check whether their address falls within the defined catchment or would be treated as an out-of-catchment application.
Many primaries in this part of Dorset are small village schools with single or mixed-age classes. Capacity is limited and catchments are drawn tightly around each village, so families in rural hamlets between two settlements should confirm which school their postcode designates them for.
School demand in Gillingham
Across the 39 schools in Gillingham with published capacity data, the average fill rate is 101%. 21 of them are currently at or above their published admission number, and at those schools catchment distance is likely to decide places at the next intake.
8 schools in Gillingham have a religious character, so faith criteria sit alongside catchment distance in their admissions policies.
30 of the schools in Gillingham are academies that set their own admissions criteria independently of Dorset, so check each school's policy directly rather than assuming the council default applies.
16 of the schools in Gillingham have a current Ofsted rating, of which 14 are rated Good or Outstanding. Demand and catchment distance tend to be tightest at the highest-rated schools.
Primary schools in Gillingham: 17 oversubscribed (30)
Stower Provost Community School
Primary · Community school
Gillingham · SP8 5LX
Hempstead Junior School
Primary · Community school
Gillingham · ME7 3HJ
Hempstead Infant School
Primary · Community school
Gillingham · ME7 3QG
Bredhurst Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School
Primary · Voluntary controlled school
Gillingham · ME7 3JY
St Augustine of Canterbury Catholic Primary School
Primary · Voluntary aided school
Gillingham · ME8 9NP
St Mary's Catholic Primary School
Primary · Voluntary aided school
Gillingham · ME7 1YH
Burnt Oak Primary School
Primary · Community school
Gillingham · ME7 1LS
Fairview Community Primary School
Primary · Community school
Gillingham · ME8 0NU
The Academy of Woodlands
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME7 2DU
Saxon Way Primary School
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Gillingham · ME7 1SJ
Oasis Academy Skinner Street
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Gillingham · ME7 1LG
Napier Community Primary and Nursery Academy
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Gillingham · ME7 4HG
Brompton-Westbrook Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME7 5DQ
St Margaret's Church of England Junior School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME8 9AE
Twydall Primary School and Nursery
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Gillingham · ME8 6JS
Byron Primary School
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Gillingham · ME7 5XX
Deanwood Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME8 9TX
Thames View Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME8 7DX
St Margaret's Infant School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME8 9AE
Riverside Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME8 8ET
Barnsole Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME7 2JG
Featherby Junior School
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Gillingham · ME8 6BT
Featherby Infant and Nursery School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME8 6PD
St Mary the Virgin Church of England Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · SP8 4GG
Gillingham Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · SP8 4QR
Milton-on-Stour Church of England Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · SP8 5QD
St George's Church of England School, Bourton
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · SP8 5BN
Wyke Primary School
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Gillingham · SP8 4SH
St Thomas of Canterbury RC Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME8 6JH
Parkwood Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME8 9LP
Secondary Schools in Gillingham (7)
Gillingham School
Secondary · Voluntary controlled school
Gillingham · SP8 4QP
Brompton Academy
Secondary · Academy sponsor led
Gillingham · ME7 5HT
Rainham School for Girls
Secondary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME8 0BX
Rainham Mark Grammar School
Secondary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME8 7AJ
The Robert Napier School
Secondary · Academy sponsor led
Gillingham · ME7 2LX
The Howard School
Secondary · Academy converter
Gillingham · ME8 0BX
Leigh Academy Rainham
Secondary · Free schools
Gillingham · ME8 8GS
Other Schools in Gillingham (6)
MidKent College
All through · Further education
Gillingham · ME7 1FN
Hospital and Medical Tuition Service
Not applicable · Miscellaneous
Gillingham · ME7 5NY
Danecourt School
Not applicable · Academy special converter
Gillingham · ME8 6AA
Rivermead School
Not applicable · Academy special converter
Gillingham · ME7 1UG
Alchemy School
Not applicable · Other independent special school
Gillingham · ME7 4LT
Will Adams Academy
Not applicable · Academy alternative provision converter
Gillingham · ME7 2BX
Catchment area boundaries for schools in Gillingham are set by Dorset and updated each year. The "last distance offered", how far the furthest successful applicant lived, changes annually based on the number of applications received.