Caldecote Church of England Academy

Caldecote Church of England Academy has made significant progress since its last inspection, moving from requires improvement to a good overall effectiveness rating. The school has created a welcoming environment where pupils feel valued and are encouraged to participate actively in school life. Strong community ties help ensure that children settle well into the nursery and progress positively throughout their education. The curriculum has been improved, giving pupils opportunities to engage with essential knowledge across subjects, and there are effective systems in place for supporting pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Despite these substantial strengths, the school recognizes areas needing further development, particularly regarding the consistency of assessing and addressing gaps in pupils' learning in certain curriculum areas.

Strengths

• Welcoming environment fostering strong community ties
• Effective support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND)
• Pupils exhibit positive behavior and mutual respect
• Strong parental engagement and positive feedback
• Improvements made to the curriculum since the previous inspection
• Robust phonics teaching leading to strong reading skills

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent assessment of pupils' understanding in some curriculum areas
• Teachers sometimes lack clarity on when to check pupils' learning
• Not all new learning is adapted to build on pupils' different starting points

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 Caldecote Church of England Academy attended 87.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 42.6% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

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, 5.6% of pupils at Caldecote Church of England Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). One pupil was 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 Caldecote Church of England Academy had 15.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 27.8% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

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, 14.1% of pupils at Caldecote Church of England Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 7.1% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

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 primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 Caldecote Church of England Academy received £9,979 and spent £9,830 for each of its 70 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £29,000 (£416 per pupil).

Across all 14 schools of Diocese of St Albans Multi-Academy Trust, income was £7,648 and spending £7,542 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 Biggleswade · Central Bedfordshire local authority: places and applications

Caldecote Church of England Academy is part of Diocese of St Albans Multi-Academy Trust, which runs 15 schools. The nearest others:

• Northill CofE Academy Biggleswade
• Great Barford Church of England Primary Academy Bedford
• Roxton Church of England Academy Bedford
• Ravensden CofE Primary Academy Bedford
• Ursula Taylor Church of England School Bedford
• St James' CofE Academy Bedford
• Wenlock CofE Academy Luton
• Thomas Whitehead Church of England Academy Dunstable
• Manshead Church of England Academy Luton
• St Leonards CE Academy Leighton Buzzard

What is Caldecote Church of England Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Caldecote Church of England Academy is Good, from an inspection in June 2024.

When was Caldecote Church of England Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Caldecote Church of England Academy was last inspected in June 2024.

How many pupils does Caldecote Church of England Academy have?

Caldecote Church of England Academy has 85 pupils on roll.

What age range does Caldecote Church of England Academy cover?

Caldecote Church of England Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

Where is Caldecote Church of England Academy?

Caldecote Church of England Academy is at Manor Place, Upper Caldecote, Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, SG18 9DA.