Cambourne Village College

Cambourne Village College is performing exceptionally well, with outstanding judgements across quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and its new sixth-form provision. Inspectors found a highly nurturing and aspirational culture where pupils are confident, respectful and supportive of one another, and where staff know pupils well and provide precise support, including for pupils with SEND. The curriculum is broad, rich and coherent from key stage 3 through to the sixth form, with strong reading support and carefully designed enrichment that helps all pupils access a top-notch education. The school’s personal development offer is exceptional, reflecting the local community and giving pupils meaningful opportunities to contribute through committees, ambassadors and leadership groups. Behaviour is excellent, attendance to lessons is prompt, and pupils take responsibility for their actions. The newly established sixth form is carefully planned, ambitious and well connected to the main school, with good careers guidance and university application support. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. Leadership is strong across the school and trust, with unified ambition, diligent oversight and good support for staff workload and well-being. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic and it remains outstanding; under the current inspection framework, no overall effectiveness grade is given. No significant weaknesses were identified in the report.

Strengths

• Outstanding quality of education across the school
• Broad, rich and ambitious curriculum from key stage 3 to key stage 5
• Excellent behaviour and respectful conduct throughout the school
• Exceptional personal development programme centred on pupils’ voices
• Highly effective support for pupils with SEND
• Strong reading support that helps all pupils access the curriculum
• Thoughtfully designed enrichment, trips and events that complement learning
• New sixth form is carefully planned and well connected to the main school
• Staff have deep subject knowledge and benefit from high-quality professional development
• Strong, unified leadership across the school, trust and governing body
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective
• Pupils are confident, polite and supportive of their peers

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Cambourne Village College attended 92.4% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 15.5% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 4.0% of pupils at Cambourne Village College were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Cambourne Village College had 17.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 15.5% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 11.7% of pupils at Cambourne Village College were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 4.2% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 Cambourne Village College received £8,942 and spent £9,114 for each of its 1,461 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £360,000 (£247 per pupil).

Across all 17 schools of The Cam Academy Trust, income was £8,882 and spending £9,053 per pupil.

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Cambridge · Cambridgeshire local authority: places and applications

Cambourne Village College is part of The Cam Academy Trust, which runs 17 schools. The nearest others:

• Jeavons Wood Primary School Great Cambourne
• Comberton Village College Cambridge
• Gamlingay Village Primary Sandy
• Offord Primary School St Neots
• Godmanchester Bridge Academy Godmanchester
• Godmanchester Community Academy Huntingdon
• Everton Heath Primary School Nr Sandy
• Harston and Newton Primary School Cambridge
• Hartford Infant and Preschool Huntingdon
• Hartford Junior School Huntingdon

What is Cambourne Village College's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Cambourne Village College is Outstanding, from an inspection in April 2025.

When was Cambourne Village College last inspected by Ofsted?

Cambourne Village College was last inspected in April 2025.

How many pupils does Cambourne Village College have?

Cambourne Village College has 1,626 pupils on roll.

What age range does Cambourne Village College cover?

Cambourne Village College for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are Cambourne Village College's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 53.7, and 59% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Cambourne Village College?

Cambourne Village College is at Sheepfold Lane, Cambourne, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, CB23 6FR.