54%
GCSE 9–4 · 2024/25
36%
GCSE 5+ · 2024/25
40.3
Attainment 8 · 2024/25
36%
EBacc entry · 2024/25
585.6
EBacc APS · 2024/25
824
Pupils · 2024/25
27%
EAL · 2024/25
24%
Persistent abs. · 2024/25
Ofsted inspection
Standards maintained
Ofsted inspection · 16/10/2024
Inadequate
Requires improvement
Good
Outstanding
Local authorityBedford
PhaseSecondary with sixth form with sixth form
School typeAcademy
Pupil : teacher ratio17.1:1
AdmissionsNon-selective
Religious characterNone
StatusOpen
Overview of Kempston Academy · Secondary with sixth form · Bedford
Part ofCHILTERN LEARNING TRUST
How does this school perform?
Key Stage 4 · 2024/25 · trend since 2016/17
GCSE 9–4 incl. Eng & maths
54%
-0pp
55%46%37%
'19'22'23'24'25
'25 · 54%
GCSE 5+ incl. Eng & maths
36%
+3pp
36%27%19%
'19'22'23'24'25
'25 · 36%
Attainment 8
40.3
+3.0
40.337.935.5
'19'22'23'24'25
'25 · 40.3
EBacc entry
36%
-24pp
59%38%17%
'19'22'23'24'25
'25 · 36%
EBacc APS
585.6
+107.3
585.6398.1210.5
'19'22'23'24'25
'25 · 585.6
Pupils & context
2024/25
Pupils on roll
824
Pupil : teacher ratio
17.1
Workforce data · 2025/26
EAL
27%
FSM eligible
30%
SEN
16%
Overall absence
9%
Persistent absence
24%
Contact
Address
Hill Rise, Kempston, Bedford, MK42 7EB
Local authority
Bedford
Telephone
Email
—
History
All years · Historical DfE data by academic year
Primary — Key Stage 2
Reading, writing and maths attainment and progress scores from DfE.
| Year | RWM expected | RWM higher | Reading exp. | Reading hi. | Writing exp. | Writing hi. | Maths exp. | Maths hi. | Science | SPAG exp. | Read. score | Maths score | GPS score | Reading prog. | Writing prog. | Maths prog. | SEN | Cohort |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018/19 | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | 17% | 525 |
| 2017/18 | 47% | 2% | 57% | 17% | 63% | 12% | 52% | 5% | 57% | 57% | 102.0 | 101.0 | 101.0 | -4.60 | -3.30 | -4.90 | — | 647 |
| 2016/17 | 31% | 2% | 50% | 11% | 52% | 6% | 45% | 6% | 47% | 44% | 98.0 | 98.0 | 100.0 | -4.50 | -3.70 | -5.40 | 10% | 762 |
Secondary — Key Stage 4
GCSE attainment and Progress 8 — how pupils progressed from KS2 to KS4.
| Year | GCSE 9–4 | GCSE 5+ | Attainment 8 | Progress 8 | EBacc entry | EBacc APS | EBacc lang entry | Cohort |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 | 54% | 36% | 40.3 | Not applicable | 36% | 585.6 | 40% | 824 |
| 2023/24 | 54% | 32% | 37.3 | -0.09 | 59% | 478.3 | 63% | 834 |
| 2022/23 | 48% | 19% | 35.5 | -0.20 | 17% | 224.9 | 33% | 733 |
| 2021/22 | 37% | 19% | 37.7 | -0.11 | 31% | 210.5 | 56% | 646 |
| 2018/19 | 47% | 24% | 39.0 | -0.21 | 42% | 475.6 | 62% | 525 |
| 2017/18 | 48% | 22% | 38.9 | -0.14 | 37% | 327.2 | 40% | 647 |
| 2016/17 | 44% | 18% | 35.4 | -0.71 | 20% | — | 37% | 762 |
Sixth form — Key Stage 5
| Year | A-level APS | Avg grade | VA progress | AAB+ | Cohort |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 | Suppressed | Suppressed | Suppressed | Not eligible | 24 |
| 2023/24 | 9.1 | E | -1.03 | Suppressed | 31 |
| 2022/23 | 15.2 | D- | — | Suppressed | 48 |
| 2021/22 | 14.1 | E+ | — | 0% | 49 |
| 2018/19 | 16.2 | D- | -0.41 | Not eligible | 55 |
| 2017/18 | 25.7 | C- | -0.21 | 0% | 60 |
| 2016/17 | 24.4 | D+ | -0.04 | 0% | 61 |
Pupils & absence
| Year | Pupils | Pupil:teacher | SEN | EAL | FSM ever | Absence | Persistent absence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 | 824 | 18.6 | 16% | 27% | 30% | 9% | 24% |
| 2023/24 | 834 | 18.0 | 17% | 26% | 31% | 9% | 28% |
| 2022/23 | 733 | 19.3 | 15% | 27% | 32% | 11% | 33% |
| 2021/22 | 646 | 16.0 | 17% | 30% | 32% | 10% | 33% |
| 2020/21 | 558 | 15.2 | 17% | 30% | 32% | — | — |
| 2018/19 | 525 | 14.2 | 17% | 34% | 40% | 6% | 21% |
| 2017/18 | — | 15.0 | — | — | — | 6% | 18% |
| 2016/17 | 762 | 20.9 | 10% | 34% | 37% | 7% | 19% |
School performance data © Crown copyright. Source: Department for Education.