Ofsted: Good trending_up Places Available emoji_events #9 in Bedford public Top 36% UK

Castle Newnham School

verifiedData: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

personMrs Ruth Wilkes

location_onBedford, MK41 9DT

language Visit Website phone 1234303403

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2018

groups

Students

711

trending_up

Progress 8

-0.01

leaderboard

GCSE Rank

#11 in Bedford

#2,766 of 4,676 nationally

summarize

Castle Newnham School is a Foundation school secondary school in Bedford, serving ages 11-16. Rated Good by Ofsted. Academic progress is broadly in line with the national average (Progress 8: -0.01).

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School Summary

Castle Newnham School is a foundation school in Bedford, admitting pupils aged 11-16. The school has approximately 711 pupils on roll.

In 2024, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 40.7, placing the school #11 in Bedford and #2,766 of 4,676 nationally. Progress 8 was -0.01 — broadly in line with the national average.

In 2018, 59% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined, with 7% achieving the higher standard.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2018. The school's current overall rating is Good.

In the most recent admissions cycle, applications were at 0.9× capacity.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 15.9:1. There are no current teaching vacancies. Teacher turnover in the previous year was 23.4%.

In the 2023/24 academic year, there were 2 permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 5.3 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

analytics

Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

2024

Progress 8 Score

-0.01

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

40.7

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc82.60%

EBacc APS3.98

2023

Progress 8 Score

-0.34

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

40.9

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc80%

EBacc APS3.97

2022

Progress 8 Score

-0.36

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

41.5

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc72%

EBacc APS4.04

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc86%

EBacc APS-

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Student Destinations (After Secondary)

This module shows what students did after finishing Key Stage 4 (GCSEs). It reflects how well the school prepares pupils for the real world.

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

93%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)83%

Apprenticeships4%

Employment6%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)6%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

93%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)85%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment6%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)5%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

89%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)86%

Apprenticeships3%

Employment0%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)8%

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Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

2018

R/W/M Expected Standard

59%

LA 45%

Reading77% LA 56%

Writing71% LA 65%

Maths75% LA 57%

Read SS

105

Maths SS

104

GPS SS

108

Progress (0 = national avg)

-1.5

Read

LA -2.9

-2.5 to -0.5

-3.8

Write

LA -2.4

-4.7 to -2.9

-1.8

Maths

LA -2.7

-2.7 to -0.9

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

Inspection Report

31 August 2024

Inspection Report

23 April 2024

Inspection Report

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25 September 2018

Inspection Report

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15 October 2013

Inspection Report

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28 November 2011

Inspection Report

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03 June 2009

Inspection Report

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08 February 2006

Inspection Report

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08 May 2000

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

2 Evaluations

2018-09-25

S5 Inspection Legacy

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

2013-10-15

None Legacy

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

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Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Official Department for Education (DfE) data. Suspensions measure temporary removals due to behavior, while exclusions represent permanent removals.

Suspension Rate

5.0%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

National average: 7.4% for this term (secondary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

2.2%(16 pupils)

Summer term 2024

Represents the proportion of unique students suspended at least once in this term.

Permanent Exclusions

0pupils

verified Excellent (Zero)

National average: 8.417% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Summer term of 2024, this school served a headcount of 722 pupils. During this period, there were 36 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 5.0%, which is below the termly national average of 7.4%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg	Perm. Excl.
2023/24 (Summer term)	722	36	5.0%	7.4%	0
2023/24 (Spring term)	719	23	3.2%	7.1%	0
2023/24 (Autumn term)	725	55	7.6%	8.2%	2
2022/23 (Summer term)	712	55	7.7%	6.6%	2
2022/23 (Spring term)	711	42	5.9%	6.4%	0
2022/23 (Autumn term)	708	32	4.5%	5.9%	2
2021/22 (Summer term)	692	38	5.5%	4.7%	2
2021/22 (Spring term)	684	38	5.6%	4.9%	1
2021/22 (Autumn term)	687	32	4.7%	4.4%	1
2020/21 (Summer term)	651	33	5.1%	3.6%	1
2020/21 (Spring term)	643	7	1.1%	1.0%	0
2020/21 (Autumn term)	631	14	2.2%	3.9%	1
2019/20 (Summer term)	586	0	0.0%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	586	19	3.2%	3.2%	1
2019/20 (Autumn term)	594	20	3.4%	4.2%	2
2018/19 (Summer term)	471	10	2.1%	3.1%	0
2018/19 (Spring term)	470	19	4.0%	3.8%	2
2018/19 (Autumn term)	468	31	6.6%	3.8%	3
2017/18 (Summer term)	483	19	3.9%	3.4%	0
2017/18 (Spring term)	480	17	3.5%	3.0%	0
2017/18 (Autumn term)	478	4	0.8%	3.7%	0
2016/17 (Summer term)	494	9	1.8%	3.0%	0
2016/17 (Spring term)	486	12	2.5%	3.3%	0
2016/17 (Autumn term)	486	0	0.0%	3.1%	0