Great Ouse Primary Academy

Great Ouse Primary Academy is a warm and nurturing school where pupils feel safe, valued and part of 'one big family'. Attendance and behaviour are particular strengths: leaders monitor attendance closely, work with families to remove barriers, and build positive relationships that underpin calm, respectful conduct. Early years, inclusion and personal development are also strong, with ambitious provision, effective support for pupils with SEND and EAL, and a wide range of pastoral care, clubs and enrichment opportunities. Achievement is generally solid. Pupils achieve highly in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6, and many attain at the higher level in mathematics. Phonics and early reading are taught effectively. However, a small number of disadvantaged pupils do not achieve as well as their peers because gaps in their learning are not identified and addressed quickly or precisely enough. In a few subjects, curriculum implementation and expectations for pupils' work are not consistently high, so some pupils do not learn as much as they could. Leadership and governance are effective, with clear strategic direction, trust oversight, strong communication and a focus on staff wellbeing. The school is part of Meridian Trust and also runs a nursery. The next steps focus on sharper individual targets and adaptations, more consistent teaching quality, and better analysis of disadvantaged pupils' learning gaps so that support is more targeted.

Strengths

• Pupils feel safe, cared for and valued, describing the school as 'one big family'.
• Attendance is carefully monitored and supported through personalised work with pupils and families.
• Positive relationships and effective behaviour management create a calm, respectful learning environment.
• Early years provision is ambitious, language-rich and prepares children well for Year 1.
• Inclusion is strong: barriers to learning are identified quickly and pupils, including those with SEND and EAL, are well supported.
• Personal development and wellbeing are well planned, with strong pastoral care, values and extensive extra-curricular opportunities.
• Pupils achieve highly in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6, with many attaining higher level in mathematics.
• Phonics and early reading teaching are effective, and subject-specific vocabulary is developed across the school.
• Leaders have a secure understanding of the curriculum and work effectively with the trust and academy council.
• Staff wellbeing and work-life balance are prioritised, and the school sits at the heart of its community.
• Safeguarding standards are met, with an open culture in which concerns are actively identified and managed.

Areas for Improvement

• A small number of disadvantaged pupils do not achieve as well as their peers.
• Gaps in disadvantaged pupils' learning are not identified quickly and precisely enough to be addressed.
• In a few subjects, curriculum implementation is less consistent and expectations for pupils' work are not consistently high.
• Teachers sometimes do not address gaps in knowledge as effectively for a small number of disadvantaged pupils.
• Individual targets and adaptations need to be more sharply focused and precise for pupils with gaps in foundational knowledge.
• Analysis of disadvantaged pupils' gaps in learning needs refinement to enable more targeted support.

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 Great Ouse Primary Academy attended 94.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 12.8% 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, 1.1% of pupils at Great Ouse Primary Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). 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 Great Ouse Primary Academy had 24.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 11.5% 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, 13.2% of pupils at Great Ouse Primary Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.7% 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 Great Ouse Primary Academy received £6,135 and spent £6,236 for each of its 426 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £467,000 (£1,097 per pupil).

Across all 36 schools of Meridian Trust, income was £7,921 and spending £7,857 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 Bedford · Bedford local authority: places and applications

Great Ouse Primary Academy is part of Meridian Trust, which runs 36 schools. The nearest others:

• Lincroft Academy Bedford
• Oakley Primary Academy Bedford
• Sharnbrook Academy Bedford
• Harrold Primary Academy Bedford
• Crosshall Infant School St Neots
• Crosshall Junior School St Neots
• Stratton School Biggleswade
• The Ferrers School Rushden
• Sawtry Junior Academy Huntingdon
• Sawtry Village Academy Huntingdon

What is Great Ouse Primary Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Great Ouse Primary Academy is Expected standard, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Great Ouse Primary Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Great Ouse Primary Academy was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Great Ouse Primary Academy have?

Great Ouse Primary Academy has 455 pupils on roll.

What age range does Great Ouse Primary Academy cover?

Great Ouse Primary Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Great Ouse Primary Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 67% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Great Ouse Primary Academy?

Great Ouse Primary Academy is at Seaforth Gardens, Bedford, Bedfordshire, MK40 4TJ.