Ofsted: Good trending_up Places Available emoji_events #35 in Central Bedfordshire public Top 98% UK

Meppershall Church of England Academy

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

personMrs Margaret Newman

corporate_farePOPPY HILL CHURCH OF ENGLAND MULTI ACADEMY TRUST

location_onShefford, SG17 5LZ

language Visit Website phone 1462813293

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2024

groups

Students

159

school

Expected Standard

30%

local_fire_department

Demand Ratio

0.9x

summarize

Meppershall Church of England Academy is a Academy converter primary school in Shefford, serving ages 2-11. Rated Good by Ofsted. Ranks in the top 98% of primary schools nationally.

article

School Summary

Meppershall Church of England Academy is an academy converter in Shefford, Central Bedfordshire, admitting pupils aged 2-11. It is part of POPPY HILL CHURCH OF ENGLAND MULTI ACADEMY TRUST. The school has approximately 222 pupils on roll, of whom 18% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, 30% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined. The school ranks #35 of 36 primaries in Central Bedfordshire and #13,836 of 14,143 nationally.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2024. The school's current overall rating is Good. Inspectors assessed quality of education as Good, behaviour and attitudes Good, personal development Good, and leadership and management Good.

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

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 35.9:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 9.1 per 1,000 pupils per term.

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

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

school

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

2025

R/W/M Expected Standard

30%

LA 50%

Reading63% LA 68%

Writing49% LA 62%

Maths44% LA 62%

Read SS

102

Maths SS

GPS SS

101

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2024

R/W/M Expected Standard

54%

LA 49%England 61%

Reading75% LA 68% · Eng 74%

Writing77% LA 61% · Eng 72%

Maths62% LA 62% · Eng 73%

Read SS

105

Maths SS

102

GPS SS

103

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2023

R/W/M Expected Standard

31%

LA 48%England 60%

Reading69% LA 67% · Eng 73%

Writing50% LA 61% · Eng 71%

Maths63% LA 63% · Eng 73%

Read SS

103

Maths SS

102

GPS SS

103

Progress (0 = national avg)

-2.8

Read

LA -1.4

-5.9 to 0.3

-4.6

Write

LA -2.4

-7.6 to -1.7

-3.3

Maths

LA -2.0

-6.1 to -0.4

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

13 March 2024

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2024-03-13

S5 Inspection EIF

Good

Education

Good

Behaviour

Good

Development

Good

Leadership

Good

2019-09-24

Section 8 inspections of good and non-exempt outstanding schools EIF

Inadequate

Education

Inadequate

Behaviour

Inadequate

Development

Requires improvement

Leadership

Inadequate

2016-02-23

None EIF

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

9.5%per term

warning Above Average

National average: 0.8% for this term (primary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

3.2%(7 pupils)

Spring term 2025

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

Permanent Exclusions

0pupils

verified Excellent (Zero)

National average: 1.225% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 222 pupils. During this period, there were 21 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 9.5%, which is above the termly national average of 0.8%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg
2024/25 (Spring term)	222	21	9.5%	0.8%
2024/25 (Autumn term)	217	19	8.8%	0.9%
2023/24 (Summer term)	221	17	7.7%	0.8%
2023/24 (Spring term)	212	1	0.5%	0.7%
2023/24 (Autumn term)	205	4	2.0%	0.8%
2022/23 (Summer term)	175	3	1.7%	0.7%
2022/23 (Spring term)	159	1	0.6%	0.6%
2022/23 (Autumn term)	154	3	1.9%	0.6%
2021/22 (Summer term)	113	0	0.0%	0.5%
2021/22 (Spring term)	98	0	0.0%	0.5%
2021/22 (Autumn term)	98	0	0.0%	0.5%
2020/21 (Summer term)	93	1	1.1%	0.4%

Source: DfE Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions in England. Data represents termly statistics as published by the Department for Education.

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Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Primary areas of need currently supported by the school. A high number often indicates specialized internal units or high staff experience in these areas.

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 10 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 10 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 6 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 3 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 3 pupils

Visual Impairment 3 pupils

health_and_safety

Parent View on Pastoral Care

Results from the official Ofsted Parent View survey, reflecting direct parent sentiment regarding the school environment.

My child is happy at this school.

100.0%Positive

My child feels safe at this school.

100.0%Positive

My child has been bullied and the school dealt with the bullying quickly and effectively.

27.0%Positive

View All Survey Responseskeyboard_arrow_down

The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

strongly agree33%

agree59%

disagree7%

don't know1%

The school makes me aware of what my child will learn during the year.

strongly agree29%

agree43%

disagree16%

strongly disagree7%

don't know6%

When I have raised concerns with the school they have been dealt with properly

strongly agree40%

agree26%

disagree6%

don't know1%

not applicable27%

Does your child have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)?

yes24%

no76%

My child has special educational needs and/or disabilities, and the school gives them the support they need to succeed.

strongly agree41%

agree47%

disagree6%

dont know6%

The school has high expectations for my child.

strongly agree37%

agree44%

disagree13%

strongly disagree1%

don't know4%

My child does well at this school.

strongly agree54%

agree36%

disagree6%

strongly disagree1%

don't know3%

The school lets me know how my child is doing.

strongly agree51%

agree34%

disagree11%

strongly disagree3%

There is a good range of subjects available to my child at this school.

strongly agree53%

agree40%

disagree4%

don't know3%

My child can take part in clubs and activities at this school.

strongly agree57%

agree36%

disagree4%

strongly disagree1%

don't know1%

The school supports my child's wider personal development.

strongly agree47%

agree39%

disagree9%

don't know6%

I would recommend this school to another parent.

yes94%

no6%

Top Primary Schools in Central Bedfordshire

Other highly-ranked schools in the same local authority

View all arrow_forward

The Vale Academy

Requires improvement

location_on Dunstable, LU5 4QP

emoji_events #1 in LA

Lark Rise Academy

Outstanding

location_on Dunstable, LU6 3PT

emoji_events #2 in LA

Clifton All Saints Academy

Good

location_on Near Shefford, SG17 5ES

emoji_events #3 in LA

Raynsford Church of England Academy

Good

location_on Henlow, SG16 6AT

emoji_events #4 in LA

Derwent Primary School

Good

location_on Henlow, SG16 6BA

emoji_events #5 in LA

Slip End Village School

Good

location_on Luton, LU1 4DD

emoji_events #6 in LA

View all schools in Central Bedfordshire arrow_forward

School Summary

Academic Performance

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Faith Priority (Church of England)

Distance to School

School Capacity

Primary Admission Trends

Students & School Environment

School Size

Language Diversity

Inclusive Support

Attendance

Ethnicity Breakdown

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Parent View on Pastoral Care

My child is happy at this school.

My child feels safe at this school.

My child has been bullied and the school dealt with the bullying quickly and effectively.

The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

The school makes me aware of what my child will learn during the year.

When I have raised concerns with the school they have been dealt with properly

Does your child have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)?

My child has special educational needs and/or disabilities, and the school gives them the support they need to succeed.

The school has high expectations for my child.

My child does well at this school.

The school lets me know how my child is doing.

There is a good range of subjects available to my child at this school.

My child can take part in clubs and activities at this school.

The school supports my child's wider personal development.

I would recommend this school to another parent.

Funding & Staffing

School Funding Allocation

Funding Breakdown

Staffing

Teacher Turnover

Top Primary Schools in Central Bedfordshire

The Vale Academy

Lark Rise Academy

Clifton All Saints Academy

Raynsford Church of England Academy

Derwent Primary School

Slip End Village School