SCHOOL PROFILE

Elstow School

Primary Academy converter URN 144039
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 420 Published school capacity
Capacity used 98.3% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 4 – 11 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest ungraded inspection

26 February 2025
Latest published outcome Standards maintained
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Academy converter
Phase Primary
Gender Mixed
Religious character Does not apply
Local authority Bedford
Trust ADVANTAGE SCHOOLS
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 413 413 full-time · 0 part-time
Female pupils 202 48.9% of pupils
Male pupils 211 51.1% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

21.1%
3.7 pts below England
School 21.1%
Bedford 20.1%
East of England 19.7%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

22.3%
2.0 pts above England
School 22.3%
Bedford 23.1%
East of England 16.4%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

0.5%
0.5 pts below England
School 0.5%
Bedford 1.8%
East of England 1.7%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

White British
41.4%
171
Any other White background
11.4%
47
Indian
10.7%
44
Any other Asian background
5.8%
24
White and Black Caribbean
4.8%
20
Pakistani
4.4%
18
Council, regional and national comparisons are pupil-weighted using published school census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS

Special educational needs

Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.

2025/26
Pupils with SEN 17.4% 72 of 413 pupils
3.4 pts below England England: 20.8%
School 17.4%
Bedford 18.6%
East of England 19.8%
England 20.8%
SEN support 15.5% 64 pupils
England 14.8% 0.7 pts above
EHC plans 1.9% 8 pupils
England 6.0% 4.1 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Social, emotional & mental health 30
Speech, language & communication 20
Autistic spectrum disorder 9
Hearing impairment 4
Specific learning difficulty 4
Moderate learning difficulty 2

SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Key stage 2 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading, writing & maths

74.0% 13.6 pts above England
School 74.0%
Bedford 52.8%
East of England 58.3%
England 60.4%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading

87.0%

13.2 pts above England

School 87.0%
Bedford 69.5%
East of England 72.9%
England 73.8%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Writing

80.0%

9.7 pts above England

School 80.0%
Bedford 64.1%
East of England 68.0%
England 70.3%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Maths

82.0%

10.0 pts above England

School 82.0%
Bedford 66.1%
East of England 70.3%
England 72.0%
School results show the percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard. Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages and are not pupil-weighted official attainment rates.
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE

Attendance profile

Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.

2024/25
ABSENCE RATE

Overall absence

4.87%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

1.34 pts lower than England
School 4.87%
Bedford 5.81%
East of England 6.17%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

11.48%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

4.34 pts lower than England
School 11.48%
Bedford 15.50%
East of England 15.39%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

0.00%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

1.80 pts lower than England
School 0.00%
Bedford 1.52%
East of England 1.83%
England 1.80%
Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages rather than pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

School context

Comparison with open primary schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

98.3% 10.1 pts above England
Elstow School
98.3%
Bedford
83.7%
East of England
87.4%
England
88.2%
Benchmarks use open schools in the same phase. Capacity utilisation is calculated from published pupil and capacity figures.
Sources: Department for Education · Get Information about Schools · Ofsted monthly management information