# Schools in Bedford

65 schools with published admissions figures

"1st preferences per place" is how many families named a school first, for each place it offered, in the newest year held. It describes demand. It is not a pass rate and it does not say whether a child would be offered a place. A dash means the figure is not held.

## How the 2026 round went

Counts families, not schools. The table below cannot be added up into these figures, because a child naming three schools appears in three of its rows.

### Primary

For September 2026, 93.4% of families applying for a primary place here were offered their first choice, and 98.4% were offered one of the three schools they named.

That is 3.8 points higher than in 2016, when it was 89.7%.

The council's primary schools between them had 2,655 places for 1,990 applications. That is a total for the whole council and says nothing about any one school in it.


### Secondary

For September 2026, 90.6% of families applying for a secondary place here were offered their first choice, and 99.0% were offered one of the three schools they named.

That is 1.2 points higher than in 2016, when it was 89.4%.

The council's secondary schools between them had 2,556 places for 2,095 applications. That is a total for the whole council and says nothing about any one school in it.


## If a family is refused a place

In 2026, families in Bedford lodged 105 appeals about a school place.

76 of them were heard by a panel and 27 succeeded, which is about 36 in every 100 heard.

The other 29 did not reach a panel. Most appeals that do not are withdrawn because a place comes up first.

This is a record of decisions already made. A panel hears one case at a time and decides it on what that family sets out, so these figures do not indicate what would happen in any particular appeal.

Source: Department for Education, admission appeals in England, reporting year 2026. Counts every school in this council area. The share that succeeded is taken over appeals heard by a panel, not over appeals lodged.

## Schools here running specialist SEN provision

1 of this council's published schools run a SEN unit or a resourced provision: teaching for children with special educational needs, on the same site as the rest of the school.

| School | Phase | What it runs |
|---|---|---|
| [Lincroft Academy, Bedford](/school/136471/lincroft-academy) | secondary | Resourced provision |

This says a provision exists and nothing more. Neither how many children it takes nor which kinds of need it is set up for is published for a mainstream school, and it is not a statement about how well any school supports children with SEN. Ask the school or the council. Source: Department for Education, special educational needs in England.

## All Through

| School | 1st prefs per place | Latest Ofsted |
|---|---:|---|
| [Castle Newnham School (Bedford)](/school/151125/castle-newnham-school) | 0.78 | Expected standard |

## Primary

| School | 1st prefs per place | Latest Ofsted |
|---|---:|---|
| [Balliol Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109464/balliol-primary-school) | 0.96 | Good |
| [Bedford Road Primary Academy (Bedford)](/school/150474/bedford-road-primary-academy) | 1.00 | Expected standard |
| [Brickhill Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109503/brickhill-primary-school) | 0.93 | School remains Good |
| [Broadmead Lower School (Bedford)](/school/109483/broadmead-lower-school) | 0.96 | Good |
| [Bromham CofE Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109611/bromham-cofe-primary-school) | 0.84 | School remains Good |
| [Camestone School (Bedford)](/school/109462/camestone-school) | 0.87 | School remains Good |
| [Carlton CofE Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109610/carlton-cofe-primary-school) | - | Not judged |
| [Cauldwell School (Bedford)](/school/144528/cauldwell-school) | 1.15 | Expected standard |
| [Christopher Reeves CofE VA Primary School (Podington)](/school/109622/christopher-reeves-cofe-va-primary-school) | - | School remains Good |
| [Cotton End Forest School (Bedford)](/school/109446/cotton-end-forest-school) | 0.94 | Not judged |
| [Edith Cavell Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109433/edith-cavell-primary-school) | 0.91 | School remains Good |
| [Eileen Wade Primary School (Huntingdon)](/school/109443/eileen-wade-primary-school) | - | Expected standard |
| [Elstow School (Bedford)](/school/144039/elstow-school) | 0.93 | Standards maintained |
| [Goldington Green Academy (Bedford)](/school/139523/goldington-green-academy) | 0.96 | Not judged |
| [Great Barford Church of England Primary Academy (Bedford)](/school/143770/great-barford-church-of-england-primary-academy) | 0.92 | Good |
| [Great Denham Primary School (Bedford)](/school/135996/great-denham-primary-school) | 1.29 | Outstanding |
| [Great Ouse Primary Academy (Bedford)](/school/144746/great-ouse-primary-academy) | 1.05 | Expected standard |
| [Harrold Primary Academy (Bedford)](/school/143084/harrold-primary-academy) | - | Good |
| [Hazeldene School (Bedford)](/school/109506/hazeldene-school) | 1.25 | Standards maintained |
| [Kempston Rural Primary School (Kempston)](/school/109463/kempston-rural-primary-school) | 1.07 | Good |
| [King's Oak Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109502/king-s-oak-primary-school) | 0.99 | Strong standard |
| [Kymbrook Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109590/kymbrook-primary-school) | - | School remains Good |
| [Lakeview School (Bedford)](/school/151526/lakeview-school) | 0.94 | Good |
| [Livingstone Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109432/livingstone-primary-school) | 1.17 | Good |
| [Milton Ernest CofE Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109613/milton-ernest-cofe-primary-school) | - | School remains Good |
| [Oakley Primary Academy (Bedford)](/school/143561/oakley-primary-academy) | 1.00 | Not judged |
| [Pinchmill Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109451/pinchmill-primary-school) | - | Not judged |
| [Priory Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109436/priory-primary-school) | 1.57 | Not judged |
| [Putnoe Primary School (Bedford)](/school/139519/putnoe-primary-school) | 0.98 | Good |
| [Queen's Park Academy (Bedford)](/school/136660/queen-s-park-academy) | 0.85 | Good |
| [Ravensden CofE Primary Academy (Bedford)](/school/148334/ravensden-cofe-primary-academy) | - | Good |
| [Renhold VC Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109603/renhold-vc-primary-school) | 0.89 | Not judged |
| [Riseley CofE Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109624/riseley-cofe-primary-school) | 1.00 | Good |
| [Roxton Church of England Academy (Bedford)](/school/146269/roxton-church-of-england-academy) | - | Good |
| [Scott Primary School & Nursery (Bedford)](/school/109512/scott-primary-school-nursery) | 0.89 | School remains Good |
| [Shackleton Primary School (Bedford)](/school/144545/shackleton-primary-school) | 0.90 | Expected standard |
| [Sharnbrook Primary (Bedford)](/school/139510/sharnbrook-primary) | 1.00 | Good |
| [Sheerhatch Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109442/sheerhatch-primary-school) | 1.00 | Needs attention |
| [Shortstown Primary School (Bedford)](/school/144546/shortstown-primary-school) | 1.00 | Expected standard |
| [Springfield Primary School (Bedford)](/school/145219/springfield-primary-school) | 0.97 | Good |
| [St Francis of Assisi Catholic Primary and Pre-School (Bedford)](/school/139547/st-francis-of-assisi-catholic-primary-and-pre-school) | 0.95 | Good |
| [St James' CofE Academy (Bedford)](/school/148982/st-james-cofe-academy) | 0.93 | Standards maintained |
| [St John Rigby Catholic Primary School (Bedford)](/school/139515/st-john-rigby-catholic-primary-school) | 0.89 | Good |
| [St Lawrence Church of England Primary School (Rushden)](/school/109628/st-lawrence-church-of-england-primary-school) | 1.00 | Expected standard |
| [The Hills Academy (Bedford)](/school/139522/the-hills-academy) | 1.22 | Standards maintained |
| [Thurleigh Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109486/thurleigh-primary-school) | - | Good |
| [Turvey Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109489/turvey-primary-school) | - | School remains Good |
| [Ursula Taylor Church of England School (Bedford)](/school/139990/ursula-taylor-church-of-england-school) | 0.98 | Not judged |
| [Westfield Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109666/westfield-primary-school) | 0.91 | Good |
| [Wilden CofE VA Primary School (Bedford)](/school/109627/wilden-cofe-va-primary-school) | 0.92 | Good |
| [Wixams Tree Primary Academy (Bedford)](/school/143926/wixams-tree-primary-academy) | 0.95 | Good |
| [Wootton Primary School (Bedford)](/school/151126/wootton-primary-school) | 0.96 | School remains Good |

## Secondary

| School | 1st prefs per place | Latest Ofsted |
|---|---:|---|
| [Bedford Academy (Bedford)](/school/136085/bedford-academy) | 0.97 | Good |
| [Bedford Free School (Bedford)](/school/138228/bedford-free-school) | 1.54 | Standards maintained |
| [Biddenham International School and Sports College (Bedford)](/school/109690/biddenham-international-school-and-sports-college) | 1.06 | Standards maintained |
| [Daubeney Academy (Bedford)](/school/138067/daubeney-academy) | 0.86 | Not judged |
| [Goldington Academy (Bedford)](/school/136552/goldington-academy) | 1.49 | Strong standard |
| [Kempston Academy (Bedford)](/school/142387/kempston-academy) | 0.89 | Standards maintained |
| [Lincroft Academy (Bedford)](/school/136471/lincroft-academy) | 0.94 | Not judged |
| [Mark Rutherford School (Bedford)](/school/139160/mark-rutherford-school) | 0.83 | Expected standard |
| [Sharnbrook Academy (Bedford)](/school/136470/sharnbrook-academy) | 0.96 | Not judged |
| [St Thomas More Catholic School (Bedford)](/school/139517/st-thomas-more-catholic-school) | 0.85 | Good |
| [Wixams Academy (Bedford)](/school/144595/wixams-academy) | 0.92 | Expected standard |
| [Wootton Academy (Bedford)](/school/137522/wootton-academy) | 0.96 | Not judged |

Full page: /schools/bedford
Figures from the Department for Education, Ofsted and local authorities; each school's own page lists its sources and dates.