Bedford Free School

Bedford Free School at a glance

Located in Bedford, Bedford Free School is a secondary school, classified by the DfE as a free school. The school educates roughly 525 pupils aged 11 to 16. Ofsted judged the school to be 'Outstanding' at its most recent inspection. In the most recent GCSE results, pupils achieved an average Attainment 8 score of 46.5, broadly in line with the national average of 46. That is down 6.2 points in its Attainment 8 score on the previous year. On our composite score, which combines the DfE attainment measures above, this places it around the middle of secondary schools nationally.

37% of pupils achieved a grade 5 or above in both English and maths, below the national average of about 45%. 62% achieved a standard pass (grade 4+) in English and maths. Competition for places is real here - 64% of first-choice applicants were offered a Year 7 place for September 2026 (168 first choices for 109 places). The council's own allocation figures show the last child offered a place for 2026 lived 2.35 miles away in a straight line — that distance is not a fixed catchment and moves each year. After Year 11, 91% of its leavers went on to education, an apprenticeship or work that they stayed in for at least two terms. Overall pupil absence was 6.5%. There are about 13.5 pupils per teacher. Given the recent dip in results, it may be worth asking the school what is behind the change and what is being done in response. This overview is generated automatically from the latest published DfE performance tables and Ofsted data; figures are rounded, and you can check the originals via the official links above.