Ursula Taylor Church of England School, Bedford
Ursula Taylor Church of England School is a primary school for pupils aged 4 to 11 in Bedford, part of Diocese of St Albans Multi-Academy Trust. It has a Church of England religious character. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in December 2011. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in April 2025 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 46th-highest of the 53 schools in Bedford with published results, and 12,729th of 14,452 across England. It was 85% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Below England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2011)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Bedford (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Ursula Taylor Church of England School in detail
Ursula Taylor Church of England School in its own words
In its own words: "As a Church of England School judged as 'Outstanding' in the last SIAMS inspection, (Statutory Inspection for Anglican and Methodist Schools) and as a 'Values Education' school, we place a very high importance upon the teaching of values, both Christian, British and Human."
The school runs a breakfast club from 7:30am and after-school care.
Vision and values (school website)Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 63% of Year 6 pupils at Ursula Taylor Church of England School reached the expected standard in reading and 59% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 74% and 70% in Bedford and 77% and 75% across England.
Results fell from 88% in reading and 73% in maths in 2024.
Getting a place at Ursula Taylor Church of England School
For September 2026 entry, 41 families put Ursula Taylor Church of England School as their first choice and 58 named it as one of their preferences, for 42 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at Ursula Taylor Church of England School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Ursula Taylor Church of England School are Edith Cavell Primary School (1 mile, Good, 70% reading, 70% maths); Scott Primary School & Nursery (1.1 miles, Good, 76% reading, 78% maths); Great Ouse Primary Academy (1.1 miles, Good, 82% reading, 76% maths); and Livingstone Primary School (1.3 miles, Good, 67% reading, 80% maths).
Each of them had higher 2025 results than Ursula Taylor Church of England School.
Edith Cavell Primary SchoolScott Primary School & NurseryGreat Ouse Primary AcademyLivingstone Primary School
The trust
Ursula Taylor Church of England School is one of 15 schools run by Diocese of St Albans Multi-Academy Trust, an academy trust.
What parents say
88 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Ursula Taylor Church of England School (as of September 2025): 91% would recommend the school, 92% say their child is happy there and 61% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that they are kept well informed about progress (96%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (61%).
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Bedford Rail Station, about 1.7 miles away in a straight line.
7 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Ursula Taylor School (outside), 90 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 28 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and criminal damage and arson. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Bedford (136).
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Ursula Taylor Church of England School issued 9 suspensions, 2.5 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to Ursula Taylor Church of England School are St Thomas More Catholic School (1.2 miles), Lincroft Academy (1.4 miles) and Biddenham International School and Sports College (1.7 miles).
St Thomas More Catholic SchoolLincroft AcademyBiddenham International School and Sports College
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; Ofsted Parent View; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from December 2011, 14 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's April 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
This school truly excels in helping children love learning and feel secure and happy. Teachers are highly skilled and set ambitious expectations that help every child achieve, including those with additional needs. The school enriches the curriculum with exciting experiences like planting potatoes in Reception and harvesting them in autumn, plus opportunities for children to see themselves as sportspeople, writers, performers and musicians.
Key Strengths
- Pupils achieve exceptionally well with high-quality work and excellent progress in reading and across all subjects
- Teachers are experts who explain things clearly and set consistently high expectations
- Ambitious curriculum goes significantly beyond the typical, including learning five musical instruments and enrichment through trips, experiences and visitors
- Exemplary behaviour and a calm, purposeful atmosphere with pupils who are focused, engaged and independent learners
- Outstanding support for pupils with SEND, who access the same curriculum and achieve exceptionally well
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective and the school has created a positive culture that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
Learning five musical instruments, artwork exhibitions in local art galleries and supermarkets, trips and experiences, reading to younger year groups
Ursula Taylor Church of England School is an outstanding primary school where pupils flourish and progress exceptionally well from their starting points. The school provides an ambitious curriculum with high expectations across all subjects.
At a Glance
22.6%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
88 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has declined from 88% to 63% (2024 to 2025). Maths has declined from 73% to 59% (2024 to 2025). Writing has declined from 73% to 43% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
25.1
Avg class size
21.8
Infant (KS1)
27.1
KS2
13
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Social & online
Keep up with Ursula Taylor Church of England School
Term dates
Ursula Taylor Church of England School is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Bedford's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Ursula Taylor Church of England School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Ursula Taylor Church of England School is in Bedford; for families living there:
Apply to Bedford for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 7
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 3
- Children hurt
- 0
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 7 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 3 serious and 4 slight.
No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt.
2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Bedford is 6 (the median across 85 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Ursula Taylor Church of England School
Will you get a place at Ursula Taylor Church of England School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Ursula Taylor Church of England School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Ursula Taylor Church of England School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Ursula Taylor Church of England School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Bedford, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Ursula Taylor Church of England School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Bedford got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
85%
Available places
359 pupils
420 places
61 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Bedford
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Bedford
Across Bedford council
Places available
2,655
Applications
1,990
Got 1st preference
93.4%
Got preferred school
98.6%
All primary applications across Bedford council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(4)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
44
SEN Support
14
EHC Plans
16.6%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
350
Total Pupils
183
Boys
167
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
19
Teachers
18.4:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£39,213
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,107
Per pupil
£2050k
Total funding
£102k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.4%
Overall absence
19.5%
Persistent absence
348
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Ursula Taylor Church of England School
Questions parents ask about Ursula Taylor Church of England School
What are SATs results like at Ursula Taylor Church of England School?
Of the pupils at Ursula Taylor Church of England School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 63% reached the expected standard in reading and 59% did so in maths.
What is Ursula Taylor Church of England School's Ofsted rating?
Ursula Taylor Church of England School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in April 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in December 2011, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Ursula Taylor Church of England School?
No fixed boundary. When Ursula Taylor Church of England School is oversubscribed, Bedford allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Ursula Taylor Church of England School?
Ursula Taylor Church of England School was not full in 2025: it ran at 85% of its 420 places.
How big are the classes at Ursula Taylor Church of England School?
Classes at Ursula Taylor Church of England School average 25.1 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Ursula Taylor Church of England School?
Ursula Taylor Church of England School has around 350 pupils on roll. 23% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Ursula Taylor Church of England School?
5.4% of sessions were missed at Ursula Taylor Church of England School in 2024/25. 19.5% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Ursula Taylor Church of England School?
Apply through Bedford's coordinated admissions process, naming Ursula Taylor Church of England School on your application. Applications for Reception places starting in September 2027 close on Friday 15 January 2027, and offers are made on Friday 16 April 2027.
How many road collisions happen near Ursula Taylor Church of England School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 7 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 3 serious and 4 slight. No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt. 2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Bedford is 6 (the median across 85 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Ursula Taylor Church of England School?
Ursula Taylor Church of England School is at High Street, Clapham, Bedford, Bedfordshire, MK41 6EG.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)