- Ofsted:Strong standard in every area
Results well above the Bedford average, low absence.
272 first choices, 182 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1652.0
Bedford 44.3England 46.2
- Days missed
- Pupils
- 958
- Pupils per teacher
- 18.8
Secondary schools in Bedford
All 12 secondary schools in Bedford. Narrow them down, then shortlist up to four to compare.
- Ofsted:Outstanding
Results above the Bedford average.
168 first choices, 109 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1651.0
Bedford 44.3England 46.2
- Days missed
- 7.7%Bedford 8.1%
- Pupils
- 536
- Pupils per teacher
- 14.5
- Ofsted:Expected standard in every area
Results above the England average, low absence.
69 first choices, 88 offers made
Met the standard at 1167%
England 62%
- Days missed
- Pupils
- 624
- Pupils per teacher
- 24.7
- Ofsted:Good
- Catholic
- Has a sixth form
Results below the Bedford average, high absence.
92 first choices, 108 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1641.0
Bedford 44.3England 46.2
- Days missed
- Pupils
- 893
- Pupils per teacher
- 15.8
- Ofsted:Needs attention in 1 area
- Has a sixth form
Results below the Bedford average, high absence.
154 first choices, 186 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1640.7
Bedford 44.3England 46.2
- Days missed
- Pupils
- 1,150
- Pupils per teacher
- 14.7
- Ofsted:Good
- Has a sixth form
Results close to the Bedford average.
285 first choices, 293 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1644.4
Bedford 44.3England 46.2
- Days missed
- 8.6%Bedford 8.1%
- Pupils
- 1,480
- Pupils per teacher
- 17.1
Biddenham International School and Sports College
Bedford, MK40 4AZ · State · Secondary · Ages 11 to 18
- Ofsted:Good
- Has a sixth form
Results below the Bedford average.
267 first choices, 252 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1640.3
Bedford 44.3England 46.2
- Days missed
- 8.8%Bedford 8.1%
- Pupils
- 1,422
- Pupils per teacher
- 13.3
KWS School
Bedford, MK41 9TJ · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 18
- Ofsted:Expected standard in every area
- Has a sixth form
Independent school. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
- Days missed
- –Bedford 8.1%
- Pupils
- 18
- Pupils per teacher
- –
Bedford Girls' School
Bedford, MK42 0BX · Independent · All-through · Ages 7 to 18 · Girls
- ISI:Inspected
- Girls
- Has a sixth form
Independent school. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
- Days missed
- –Bedford 8.1%
- Pupils
- 843
- Pupils per teacher
- –
Bedford Greenacre Independent School
Bedford, MK41 7FZ · Independent · All-through · Ages 0 to 18
- ISI:Inspected
- Has a nursery
- Has a sixth form
Independent school. Results above the Bedford average.
Attainment 8 at 1647.7
Bedford 44.3England 46.2
- Days missed
- –Bedford 8.1%
- Pupils
- 775
- Pupils per teacher
- –
Bedford Modern School
Bedford, MK41 7NT · Independent · All-through · Ages 7 to 18
- ISI:Inspected
- Faith school
- Grammar
- Has a sixth form
Independent school. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
- Days missed
- –Bedford 8.1%
- Pupils
- 1,219
- Pupils per teacher
- –
Bedford School
Bedford, MK40 2TU · Independent · All-through · Ages 7 to 19 · Boys
- ISI:Inspected
- Church of England
- Boys
- Has a sixth form
Independent school. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
- Days missed
- –Bedford 8.1%
- Pupils
- 994
- Pupils per teacher
- –
- Secondary schools12
- Attainment 8 at 1644.3England 46.2
- Good or Outstanding100%of graded schools ·
- Faith schools3 of 121 Catholic, 1 Church of England
- With a nursery class1take children from 2 or 3
- Free school meals28.6%of pupils get them
The big picture
How Bedford's secondary schools spread out
Each dot is one school. Hover over a dot to see which school it is.
Attainment 8 at 16
Average score across each pupil's best eight GCSEs.
Days missed
Share of school sessions pupils missed, for any reason. Lower is better.
Ofsted grades in Bedford
The last full grade for each school Ofsted has graded. 8 newer or converted schools don't have a grade yet.
- Outstanding: 1 of 4
- Good: 3 of 4
- Requires improvement: 0 of 4
- Inadequate: 0 of 4
Before you apply
Four things worth knowing in Bedford
Some are faith schools.
3 of the 12 secondary schools in Bedford have a religious character. When they're full, they can put families of their faith first, so check each school's rules.
Show schools with no religious characterApply by 31 October.
Apply to your council in Year 6 for a Year 7 place. Offers come out on 1 March.
Check how old the Ofsted grade is.
Some grades are many years old. Each school's page shows the date of its last inspection and what's changed since.
Show Good or OutstandingList a school you're likely to get.
Popular schools fill up from the families who live closest. Add your postcode to see which schools are nearest, and put one of them on your form.
Add my postcode
About these schools
Secondary schools in Bedford, explained
There are 12 secondary schools in Bedford, teaching 10,912 children. 1 are run by the council and 6 are academies or free schools. Among them are 5 independent schools.
100% of the mainstream state schools Ofsted has graded are Good or Outstanding, against 94.8% across England. 1 of them is Outstanding, though some grades are several years old, so check the date on each school's page.
Pupils in Bedford scored an average Attainment 8 of 44.3 across their best eight GCSEs, against 46.2 across England.
28.6% of pupils get free school meals. Schools here spend £7,800 a year on each pupil, against £8,120 across England. 24.3% of pupils are persistently absent, missing one day in ten or more, against 18.1% across England.
Looking further afield? See secondary schools near me, or everything in Bedford.
Explore
Secondary schools near meLook closer to home
Pick an area to see its secondary schools, or browse other kinds of school in and around Bedford.
- Kempston7 secondary schools
- Wixams1 school
- Wootton1 school
- Stewartby1 school
- Sandy1 school
- Ampthill2 secondary schools
- Shefford1 school
- Flitwick1 school
Other schools in Bedford
All schools in Bedford
Questions
Questions parents ask
How many secondary schools are in Bedford?
There are 12 secondary schools in Bedford, including state-funded, academies, and independent schools.
What are the best secondary schools in Bedford?
The highest-ranked secondary schools in Bedford on Eduscope are Goldington Academy, Bedford Free School and Castle Newnham School. We rank each state school against schools of the same phase across England on its Ofsted inspection, results and attendance.
How many Ofsted Outstanding secondary schools are in Bedford?
Bedford has 1 secondary schools rated Outstanding by Ofsted. A further 3 are rated Good, meaning 100% of inspected schools hold a Good or Outstanding rating.
How are secondary schools in Bedford ranked on Eduscope?
Each state school gets a rank score out of 100. We place each measure as a percentile among state schools of the same phase across England, then weight them. Primary schools: latest Ofsted inspection 30%, pupils meeting the expected standard at Key Stage 2 30%, pupils reaching the higher standard 10%, persistent absence (lower is better) 20%, average reading and maths scores 10%. Secondary schools: latest Ofsted inspection 25%, Attainment 8 25%, grade 5 or above in English and maths 15%, persistent absence (lower is better) 15%, pupils staying in education or work after GCSEs 10%, A level average points (sixth forms only) 10%. Results are averaged over up to three years, and an Ofsted grade older than five years counts for less. A school needs data for at least 60% of the weights. Special schools, pupil referral units, nurseries, independent schools and 16 to 19 schools aren't ranked, and are listed by Ofsted grade and name. Our methodology page explains more.
What is the average class size in Bedford secondary schools?
The average pupil-teacher ratio across secondary schools in Bedford is 16:1. While this is not a direct measure of class size, it indicates the level of teaching resource available per pupil.
How do I choose a secondary school in Bedford?
When choosing a secondary school in Bedford, consider Ofsted ratings, GCSE results (Progress 8 and Attainment 8), sixth form provision, and the school's specialisms. You can compare all 12 secondary schools on Eduscope using filters for school type, gender, and admissions policy.
Sources: Department for Education school performance tables, school census and workforce data, Get Information About Schools and Ofsted. Distances are straight-line estimates.