St Lawrence Church of England Primary School
About St Lawrence Church of England Primary School
St Lawrence Church of England Primary School is a small state primary in Bedford, operating well below its capacity of 180 with just 126 pupils on roll. That spare capacity is notable because the school is actually oversubscribed for Reception entry: for the 2025/26 academic year, it received 21 applications for just 9 places, with all 9 first-preference families offered a spot. The oversubscription ratio of 2. 33 applicants per place signals strong local demand, even though the school isn't full overall. Its intake is also significantly more disadvantaged than the national average — 27% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, compared with roughly 23% nationally for primary schools. The school is a Church of England foundation, with a nursery on site for children from age three, and is led by headteacher Sarah Bush. It has a Good rating from Ofsted, a notable improvement from its previous Requires Improvement judgement in 2017.
Key Details
The full report on this school
The inspection in plain English, admissions context, and how this school compares to nearby alternatives — all in one full school report.
- Ofsted inspection in plain EnglishStrengths, concerns and what inspectors flagged
- Parent View survey resultsWhat parents told Ofsted — when the school has 10+ responses
- Where Ofsted and parents disagreeGaps to probe + questions to ask at the open day
- Admissions & catchmentAdmission criteria, distance cutoffs (where the LA publishes them)
- Nearby schools comparedBackup options with Ofsted, demand and distance
- Attendance & behaviour dataPersistent absentees, suspensions and exclusions vs national
Ofsted Inspection Breakdown
1 Dec 2021Source: Ofsted, 2 Mar 2022. Ratings: 1=Outstanding, 2=Good, 3=Requires Improvement, 4=Inadequate.
SEND Support
Source: Department for Education, 2024/25. Support availability based on current student population.
School day
Teaching hours
08:40 – 15:15
Breakfast club
07:30-08:50
After-school care
15:15-17:30
Source: st-lawrenceschool.co.uk. Extracted automatically — confirm with the school before relying on these times.
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