Thurleigh Primary School

  • Primary
  • Local authority maintained
  • Ages 3 to 11
Ofsted: Good

High Street, Thurleigh, Bedford, MK44 2DBOpen in maps (opens in a new tab)

Thurleigh Primary School is a primary school in Bedford for ages 3 to 11. It is one of the 84 schools in Bedford. It ranks 31st of 52 primary schools in Bedford. Its latest Ofsted rating is Good, from an inspection in April 2024.

Ofsted inspection

Inspected 17 April 2024, report published 9 June 2024

Overall effectiveness
Good
Quality of education
Good
Behaviour and attitudes
Outstanding
Personal development
Outstanding
Leadership and management
Good
Early years provision
Good
Safeguarding
Met

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 17 April 2024

This is a warm, friendly and nurturing school. Pupils are happy and safe here. Respect underpins everything that they do. Pupils appreciate and celebrate everyone's differences. Pupils enjoy the engaging lessons that teachers plan across the curriculum. They know staff have high expectations of them in everything that they do. Pupils work hard to meet them. This creates a positive atmosphere throughout the school. Pupils take great pride in their work, and they achieve well. All pupils are polite and courteous. Pupils know that staff will deal with any issues fairly and respectfully. The effective reward system reinforces what pupils achieve and their positive attitudes. Pupils are active citizens. They make meaningful contributions to their close-knit community. They contribute to litter picking, make and distribute Christmas cards to residents in the community and participate in local competitions. Pupils know and understand what democracy is. They vote for who will be head boy and girl, school council members and house captains. This develops leadership opportunities throughout the school, promoting confidence and independence in pupils.

What the school should improve

  • On a few occasions sufficient accuracy is not given to the teaching of letter sounds for pupils. As a result, some pupils struggle to develop sufficient phonics knowledge on which to build. The school should rigorously check that these pupils know the individual sounds well before they try to blend these sounds together.
  • In a few foundation subjects, staff do not use assessment information well enough to ensure that pupils know and remember the important knowledge they need to build more complex knowledge on. Staff are therefore teaching more complex knowledge without checking the pupils have the initial base knowledge. The school should ensure teachers accurately use the information from assessments to inform their planning and to adapt the curriculum accordingly.

Exam results

SATs results (key stage 2), 2024/25

10 pupils took the tests

Expected standard in reading, writing and maths50%

50%, 12 percentage points below the England average of 62%.

Higher standard in reading, writing and maths0%

0%, 8 percentage points below the England average of 8%.

Reading, average scaled score106

106, the same as the England average.

Maths, average scaled score103

103, 2 below the England average of 105.

Grammar, punctuation and spelling, average scaled score104

104, 1 below the England average of 105.

Pupil numbers and mix

92 pupils on roll, with places for 105

Eligible for free school meals28.3%

28.3%, 1.8 percentage points above the England average of 26.5%.

English as an additional language3.3%

3.3%, 18.3 percentage points below the England average of 21.6%.

Special educational needs support15.2%

15.2%, 0.4 percentage points above the England average of 14.8%.

Education, health and care plan2.2%

2.2%, 3.8 percentage points below the England average of 6%.

Schools near Thurleigh Primary School

SchoolDistanceOfstedResults
Kymbrook Primary School3 milesOfsted: Good75% met the expected standard
Milton Ernest CofE Primary School3 milesOfsted: Good55% met the expected standard
Riseley CofE Primary School3 milesOfsted: Good56% met the expected standard
Ravensden CofE Primary Academy3 milesOfsted: Good9% met the expected standard
Wilden CofE VA Primary School3 milesOfsted: Good63% met the expected standard

School details

School type
Foundation school
Sector
Local authority maintained
Age range
3 to 11
Gender
Mixed
Nursery classes
Yes
Headteacher
Ms Debonair Brown
Address
High Street, Thurleigh, Bedford, MK44 2DB
Local authority
Bedford
URN
109486

School details from Get Information about Schools, 17 September 2026. Ofsted outcomes published to 31 August 2026. Exam results for 2024/25 from the Department for Education. Pupil mix from the school census, 2025/26.