Bedford Free School
General Info
- Education Phase
- Secondary
- Ofsted rating
- Outstanding Apr 23 2025 Ofsted report
- Gender
- Mixed
- Age range
- 11 - 16 y.o.
- Type
- Free Schools
- Funding
- State-funded secondary
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Religious Character
- None
- Sixth Form
- Does not have a sixth form
- Local authority
- Bedford
- Unique reference
- 138228
- Address
- Cauldwell Street, MK42 9AD
Pupils
- Number of Pupils
- 525 (95% of total capacity)
- Boys
- 51.4%
- Girls
- 48.6%
- First language not English
- 64%
- Free school meals (FSM)
- 28.4%
- Persistent absence
- 19.1%
- Special education needs (SEN)
- 4.4%
Indian 16.4%
Other White 15.8%
Mixed 14.1%
White British 13.9%
African 11.4%
Bangladeshi 10.7%
Pakistani 7.8%
Other 3.8%
Other Asian 1.9%
Caribbean 1.5%
Unclassified 1.1%
Other Black 0.8%
Gypsy/Roma 0.4%
Irish 0.2%
Chinese 0.2%
Exam Results
GCSE Results
Entering EBacc
School 89%
Local authority average 38%
England average 41%
Grade 5 or above in English & maths GCSEs
School 36%
Local authority average 44%
England average 45%
Attainment 8 score
School 46.1
Local authority average 44.3
England average 45.9
EBacc average point score
School 4.46
Local authority average 3.88
England average 4.08
Subjects
GCSE Subjects
| Subject | Qualification | Number of entries |
|---|---|---|
| Arabic | GCSE | 2 |
| Art & Design (Fine Art) | GCSE | 32 |
| Biology | GCSE | 16 |
| Chemistry | GCSE | 16 |
| Computer Studies/Computing | GCSE | 28 |
| Design & Technology | GCSE | 20 |
| English Language | GCSE | 97 |
| English Literature | GCSE | 97 |
| French | GCSE | 14 |
| Geography | GCSE | 56 |
Admissions
Bedford Free School
- Admission Policy
- Non-selective
- Total available places
- 108
- Status
- Oversubscribed
Applications
- 1st preference
- 190
- 2nd preference
- 135
- 3rd preference
- 51
- From another Local Authority
- 4
Offers
- 1st preference
- 98
- 2nd preference
- 9
- 3rd preference
- 1
- To another Local Authority
- 0
Class sizes
| Class type | Class size |
|---|---|
| Average size of one-teacher classes | 22.5 |
Cohort sizes
| Class type | Total Boys Girls |
|---|---|
| Year 7 | 106 49 57 |
| Year 8 | 106 52 54 |
| Year 9 | 105 56 49 |
| Year 10 | 107 58 49 |
| Year 11 | 101 55 46 |
Participation in Education, Training, Employment
| Destinations after GCSEs | School LA England |
|---|---|
| Staying in education | 86.0% 87.5% 85.5% |
Further education | 47.0% 47.3% 36.9% |
School sixth form | 39.0% 39.1% 35.2% |
Sixth form college | 0.0% 0.2% 12.9% |
Other education destinations | 0.0% 0.9% 0.5% |
| Entering employment | 3.0% 2.5% 2.6% |
| Entering apprenticeships | 1.0% 2.2% 3.3% |
| Not in education or employment | 5.0% 4.5% 5.7% |
| Destination unknown | 4.0% 3.3% 3.0% |