Edlesborough Primary Academy

Edlesborough Primary Academy is performing well overall, with a rating of 'Good' in various areas, including the quality of education, personal development, and leadership. The school has cultivated a supportive and inclusive environment where pupils display exemplary attitudes to learning and show a strong commitment to their education. Notably, behaviour is outstanding, and pupils feel safe and valued within the school community. The school's ambitious curriculum is successfully enabling students, including those with special needs and/or disabilities, to achieve well across subjects. Parents express high levels of satisfaction with the school's work and environment. However, the inspection did identify areas for improvement, particularly within the Nursery setting, where the clarity of the early years curriculum needs enhancement. While most subjects are taught effectively, consistency in delivery and teachers' subject knowledge requires attention in certain foundation subjects. The school is expected to focus on strengthening these areas to ensure all pupils attain consistent success across the entire curriculum in the future.

Strengths

• Pupils display exemplary attitudes to learning.
• Behaviour is outstanding with no disruptions to learning.
• The school has an ambitious and inclusive curriculum.
• Pupils with SEND achieve well alongside their classmates.
• Parents express high satisfaction with the school.
• Strong emphasis on phonics and reading from an early age.
• Pupils enjoy and take pride in their work.

Areas for Improvement

• The Nursery curriculum lacks clarity in the seven areas of learning.
• In some foundation subjects, curriculum implementation is inconsistent.
• Teachers' subject knowledge is not always aligned with curriculum aims.

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 Edlesborough Primary Academy attended 94.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 10.3% 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, 2.1% of pupils at Edlesborough 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 Edlesborough Primary Academy had 19.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 15.8% 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, 10.7% of pupils at Edlesborough Primary Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.0% 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 Edlesborough Primary Academy received £7,128 and spent £7,365 for each of its 195 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £28,000 (-£143 per pupil).

Across all 9 schools of Knowledge Schools Trust, income was £8,428 and spending £8,410 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 Dunstable · Buckinghamshire local authority: places and applications

Edlesborough Primary Academy is part of Knowledge Schools Trust, which runs 9 schools. The nearest others:

• Dovery Academy Leighton Buzzard
• Wixams Academy Bedford
• Wixams Tree Primary Academy Bedford
• Bedford Road Primary Academy Bedford
• Earl's Court Free School Primary London
• West London Free School London
• West London Free School Primary London
• Kensington Primary Academy London

What is Edlesborough Primary Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Edlesborough Primary Academy is Good, from an inspection in November 2023.

When was Edlesborough Primary Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Edlesborough Primary Academy was last inspected in November 2023.

How many pupils does Edlesborough Primary Academy have?

Edlesborough Primary Academy has 224 pupils on roll.

What age range does Edlesborough Primary Academy cover?

Edlesborough Primary Academy for pupils aged 2 to 11.

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

In 2025, 71% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Edlesborough Primary Academy?

Edlesborough Primary Academy is at High Street, Edlesborough, Dunstable, Bedfordshire, LU6 2HS.