Great Denham Primary School
Greenkeepers Road, Great Denham, Bedford, MK40 4GG
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Foundation school
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- The Biddenham Campus Trust
- Headteacher
- Mrs Denise Burgess
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- North Bedfordshire
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 650
- Pupils on roll
- 677
- URN
- 135996
- Local authority
- Bedford
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01234266245
About this school
Great Denham Primary School is a foundation primary school in Bedford. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 677 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Great Denham Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Early years
- Outstanding
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 64 | 59 | 85 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 70% | 68% | 72% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 6% | 5% | 7% |
| Expected standard in reading | 81% | 88% | 80% |
| Expected standard in maths | 80% | 78% | 84% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 75% | 76% | 78% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 107.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 105.0 | 105.0 | 104.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.10 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.90 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.40 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Great Denham Primary School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Bedford average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 70% | 50.7% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 68% | 53.8% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 72% | 52.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.3% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.3% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 613 |
| 2023/24 | 644 |
| 2024/25 | 677 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Great Denham Primary School compares
Great Denham Primary School ranked 8th of 51 primary schools in Bedford for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 71% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 76% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 72% | 4.3% | 16% | 677 | — |
| St James' CofE Academy | 54% | 4.9% | 19.3% | 194 | 0.5 miles |
| Westfield Primary School | 48% | 5.8% | 23% | 298 | 0.6 miles |
| St Francis of Assisi Catholic Primary and Pre-School | 44% | 5.6% | 31.4% | 271 | 0.8 miles |
| Queen's Park Academy | 61% | 5.5% | 36.8% | 446 | 0.8 miles |
| Bedford Road Primary Academy | 46% | 5.4% | 30% | 365 | 0.9 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
Inspection history
- 22 May 2024
-
Ungraded inspection report23 March 2023
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 16.01%
- English as an additional language
- 19.9%
- Overall absence
- 4.34%
- Persistent absence
- 8.77%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St James' CofE Academy0.5 miles
Primary · Bedford
-
Westfield Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Bedford
-
St Francis of Assisi Catholic Primary and Pre-School0.8 miles
Primary · Bedford
-
Queen's Park Academy0.8 miles
Primary · Bedford
-
Bedford Road Primary Academy0.9 miles
Primary · Bedford
Other schools in Bedford
Great Denham Primary School ranks 8th of the 53 ranked primary schools in Bedford.
- Balliol Primary School Primary
- Bedford Road Primary Academy Primary
- Brickhill Primary School Primary
- Broadmead Lower School Primary
- Bromham CofE Primary School Primary
- Camestone School Primary
- Carlton CofE Primary School Primary
- Castle Newnham School Primary
- Cauldwell School Primary
- Cotton End Forest School Primary
- Cranfield Church of England Academy Primary
- Edith Cavell Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Great Denham Primary School teach?
- Great Denham Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Bedford.
- Who is the headteacher of Great Denham Primary School?
- The headteacher of Great Denham Primary School is Mrs Denise Burgess, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Great Denham Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Great Denham Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Great Denham Primary School?
- Great Denham Primary School has 677 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Great Denham Primary School full?
- Great Denham Primary School has capacity for 650 pupils and 677 on roll (104%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Great Denham Primary School a faith school?
- No. Great Denham Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Great Denham Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Great Denham Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Is Great Denham Primary School part of an academy trust?
- Great Denham Primary School is part of The Biddenham Campus Trust. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Great Denham Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 70% in 2022/23 and 72% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Great Denham Primary School compare with other schools in Bedford?
- Great Denham Primary School ranked 8th of 51 primary schools in Bedford for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 71% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 76% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Great Denham Primary School's absence rate?
- Great Denham Primary School's overall absence rate is 4.3% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Great Denham Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Great Denham Primary School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 1 July 2026.