SCHOOL PROFILE

The Linden Academy

Primary Free schools URN 137324
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 504 Published school capacity
Capacity used 84.7% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 4 – 11 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest graded inspection

18 June 2024
Latest published outcome Good
OEIF
Quality of education Good
Behaviour & attitudes Good
Personal development Good
Leadership & management Good
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Free schools
Phase Primary
Gender Mixed
Religious character —
Local authority Luton
Trust ADVANTAGE SCHOOLS
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 427 427 full-time · 0 part-time
Female pupils 199 46.6% of pupils
Male pupils 228 53.4% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

34.2%
9.4 pts above England
School 34.2%
Luton 27.3%
East of England 19.7%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

52.2%
31.9 pts above England
School 52.2%
Luton 49.4%
East of England 16.4%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

0.0%
1.0 pts below England
School 0.0%
Luton 0.6%
East of England 1.7%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

African
23.0%
98
Pakistani
14.1%
60
Any other White background
11.2%
48
Indian
10.3%
44
Bangladeshi
7.0%
30
Any other Asian background
5.2%
22
Council, regional and national comparisons are pupil-weighted using published school census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS

Special educational needs

Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.

2025/26
Pupils with SEN 11.2% 48 of 427 pupils
9.6 pts below England England: 20.8%
School 11.2%
Luton 19.8%
East of England 19.8%
England 20.8%
SEN support 9.4% 40 pupils
England 14.8% 5.4 pts below
EHC plans 1.9% 8 pupils
England 6.0% 4.2 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Speech, language & communication 18
Social, emotional & mental health 11
Moderate learning difficulty 9
Autistic spectrum disorder 6
No specialist assessment yet 2
Specific learning difficulty 1

SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Key stage 2 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading, writing & maths

64.0% 3.6 pts above England
School 64.0%
Luton 63.3%
East of England 58.3%
England 60.4%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading

79.0%

5.2 pts above England

School 79.0%
Luton 75.2%
East of England 72.9%
England 73.8%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Writing

74.0%

3.7 pts above England

School 74.0%
Luton 70.8%
East of England 68.0%
England 70.3%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Maths

74.0%

2.0 pts above England

School 74.0%
Luton 74.7%
East of England 70.3%
England 72.0%
School results show the percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard. Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages and are not pupil-weighted official attainment rates.
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE

Attendance profile

Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.

2024/25
ABSENCE RATE

Overall absence

5.59%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

0.62 pts lower than England
School 5.59%
Luton 6.08%
East of England 6.17%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

23.13%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

7.31 pts higher than England
School 23.13%
Luton 16.56%
East of England 15.39%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

2.86%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

1.06 pts higher than England
School 2.86%
Luton 1.45%
East of England 1.83%
England 1.80%
Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages rather than pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

School context

Comparison with open primary schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

84.7% 3.5 pts below England
The Linden Academy
84.7%
Luton
93.1%
East of England
87.4%
England
88.2%
Benchmarks use open schools in the same phase. Capacity utilisation is calculated from published pupil and capacity figures.
Sources: Department for Education · Get Information about Schools · Ofsted monthly management information