SCHOOL PROFILE

Ardley Hill Academy

Primary Academy converter URN 138209
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 520 Published school capacity
Capacity used 81.2% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 2 – 11 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest graded inspection

16 July 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 Academy converter
Phase Primary
Gender Mixed
Religious character Does not apply
Local authority Central Bedfordshire
Trust CHILTERN LEARNING TRUST
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 422 384 full-time · 38 part-time
Female pupils 206 48.8% of pupils
Male pupils 216 51.2% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

11.8%
13.0 pts below England
School 11.8%
Central Bedfordshire 14.8%
East of England 19.7%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

22.7%
2.4 pts above England
School 22.7%
Central Bedfordshire 10.7%
East of England 16.4%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

2.6%
1.6 pts above England
School 2.6%
Central Bedfordshire 2.0%
East of England 1.7%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

White British
60.0%
253
Any other White background
9.2%
39
Any other Asian background
5.9%
25
Unclassified
5.9%
25
African
4.5%
19
White and Black Caribbean
3.8%
16
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 14.7% 62 of 422 pupils
6.1 pts below England England: 20.8%
School 14.7%
Central Bedfordshire 18.2%
East of England 19.8%
England 20.8%
SEN support 10.9% 46 pupils
England 14.8% 3.9 pts below
EHC plans 3.8% 16 pupils
England 6.0% 2.2 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Speech, language & communication 25
Social, emotional & mental health 18
Moderate learning difficulty 9
Autistic spectrum disorder 4
Specific learning difficulty 4
No specialist assessment yet 2

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

60.0% 0.4 pts below England
School 60.0%
Central Bedfordshire 50.4%
East of England 58.3%
England 60.4%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading

71.0%

2.8 pts below England

School 71.0%
Central Bedfordshire 68.2%
East of England 72.9%
England 73.8%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Writing

78.0%

7.7 pts above England

School 78.0%
Central Bedfordshire 62.2%
East of England 68.0%
England 70.3%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Maths

69.0%

3.0 pts below England

School 69.0%
Central Bedfordshire 63.0%
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

5.46%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

0.75 pts lower than England
School 5.46%
Central Bedfordshire 5.90%
East of England 6.17%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

13.69%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

2.13 pts lower than England
School 13.69%
Central Bedfordshire 14.22%
East of England 15.39%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

1.68%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

0.13 pts lower than England
School 1.68%
Central Bedfordshire 1.77%
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

81.2% 7.0 pts below England
Ardley Hill Academy
81.2%
Central Bedfordshire
92.8%
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