Harlington Upper School

Central Bedfordshire · LU5 6NX

General information Secondary School · 13-18 years Who goes here 1156 pupils, 13.1% FSM

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN Resourced provision · 10.5% on SEN support Behaviour 7.8% absence rate Staff 15.1% turnover Financials £7,195 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Harlington Upper School

General Information

Address: Goswell End Road, Harlington, Dunstable, LU5 6NX – View on map
Phone: 01525755100
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mrs Helen Harris
Age range: 13-18 years
Demand for places (Year 9, September 2025): 184 families put it first for 202 places – 9 for every 10 places. Every one of them was offered a place. No places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2022 9 · 2023 10 · 2024 9 · 2025 9
Sixth form: Yes
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: None
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

1156 pupils out of 1360 places

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 110
% eligible for free school meals: 13.1%
Pupil mix: 6 in 10 (more mixed than the Central Bedfordshire average)
English as an additional language: 4% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 15.1% a year (Central Bedfordshire 15.8%, typical in England 15.5%)
Where they went: about 59% moved to another school, 41% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house.

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Across Central Bedfordshire: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 33 (1.4 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.7)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 1
Suspensions for bullying: 42 (1.8 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.9)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 10 (0.4 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.8)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state secondary schools in Central Bedfordshire, not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 7.8%
Persistently absent pupils: 19.6%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

Resourced provision for Hearing impairment

Places are usually for children with an EHC Plan and are arranged through the council, not the normal school application.

Pupils on SEN Support: 10.5%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.9%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Social, emotional and mental health: 56 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 22 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 12 pupils
Other difficulty or disability: 9 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 9 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Social, emotional and mental health: 12 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 10 pupils
Hearing impairment: 5 pupils
Other difficulty or disability: 4 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 1 pupil

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

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Behaviour

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Openness

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Teaching Quality

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School Ethos

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Ability to Deal with Problems

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Headteacher Approval

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SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

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Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Good 2023 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted changed how it rates schools in the last couple of years, so ratings from different years aren't always on the same scale - that's why we show the year alongside every rating.

Attainment 8 score: 47.8
Compared with the area: 3.0 points above the Central Bedfordshire average (44.8)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Below (−2.3 points against an expected 50.1)
Grade 4+ in English and maths: 76% (Central Bedfordshire 67%, England 65%) Improving
Data year: 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

GCSE results over time

This schoolCentral Bedfordshire averageEngland→ Broadly steady No clear rise or fall since 2022/23 (changes this small are normal from one year group to the next). In 2024/25 this school was 3.0 points above the Central Bedfordshire average (44.8).

About the Attainment 8 score

Attainment 8 measures a pupil's average result across 8 GCSE-equivalent qualifications (English and maths count double). It shows how pupils performed, not how much progress they made getting there - a school with a higher score doesn't necessarily add more value, since pupils often arrive with different starting points. Progress 8 is the measure designed to account for that, but it currently can't be calculated for any school for the two most recent academic years, due to a nationwide gap in the data caused by COVID-19 disruption to Key Stage 2 testing.

3rd of 15 secondary schools in Central Bedfordshire for Attainment 8

#1Cedars Upper School48.5
#2Vandyke Upper School48.2
#3Harlington Upper School47.8
#4Samuel Whitbread Academy46.7
#5Redborne Upper School and Community College46.6

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

Rank School Score

#1Cedars Upper School48.5
#2Vandyke Upper School48.2
#3Harlington Upper School47.8
#4Samuel Whitbread Academy46.7
#5Redborne Upper School and Community College46.6
#6Priory Academy46.2
#7Houstone School46.1
#8Etonbury Academy45.5
#9Manshead Church of England Academy43.0
#10Fulbrook School42.9
#11Henlow Church of England Academy42.7
#12Sandy Secondary School40.8
#13Queensbury Academy40.0
#14Stratton School38.9
#15All Saints Academy Dunstable36.9

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 93.0%
Went into further education: 83.0%
Data year: 2024/25

About leaver destinations

This shows where a school's Year 11 leavers were recorded the following year - in a "sustained" destination means in education, an apprenticeship, or employment for at least 6 months, not just enrolled briefly. It's a different picture from exam results alone, and can highlight schools that support pupils well beyond just their GCSE grades.

GCSE Subjects Offered

Maths (General)
English Language
English Literature
Science Double Award
History
Geography
Business Studies
Religious Studies
Food Technology
Spanish
Chemistry (General)
Biology
Physics (General)
Sports Studies
Computer Science
French Language
Art & Design
D & T
Media Studies
Speech & Drama
Economics
Dance: General
Music Studies (General)
Punjabi
Russian

About this subject list

This isn't the school's own description of its curriculum - it's real DfE exam entry data, showing which GCSE subjects this school's pupils were actually entered for in 2024/25. A subject not appearing here may still be taught but had no pupils entered that year, so treat this as a helpful guide rather than a complete guarantee - it's worth confirming directly with the school for the year your child would actually study.

View full Ofsted inspection report

6th of 17 secondary schools in Central Bedfordshire for Ofsted rating

#4Cedars Upper SchoolGood
#5Etonbury AcademyGood
#6Harlington Upper SchoolGood
#7Holywell SchoolGood
#8Leighton Middle SchoolGood

Click to see the full ranking

Ofsted Rating ranking

Based on real Ofsted ratings (via official DfE data) for schools on the same four-word grading scale.

Rank School Score

#1Alameda Middle SchoolGood
#2Arnold AcademyGood
#3Brooklands Middle SchoolGood
#4Cedars Upper SchoolGood
#5Etonbury AcademyGood
#6Harlington Upper SchoolGood
#7Holywell SchoolGood
#8Leighton Middle SchoolGood
#9Linslade SchoolGood
#10Parkfields Middle SchoolGood
#11Pix Brook AcademyGood
#12Priory AcademyGood
#13Queensbury AcademyGood
#14Redborne Upper School and Community CollegeGood
#15Samuel Whitbread AcademyGood
#16Vandyke Upper SchoolGood
#17Woodland Middle School AcademyGood

Financials

Spending per pupil: £7,195 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

15th of 26 secondary schools in Central Bedfordshire for spending per pupil

#13Woodland Middle School Academy£7,307
#14Cedars Upper School£7,216
#15Harlington Upper School£7,195
#16Pix Brook Academy£7,035
#17Robert Bloomfield Academy£6,950

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

Rank School Score

#1Edward Peake CofE VC School£9,648
#2All Saints Academy Dunstable£9,007
#3Henlow Church of England Academy£8,051
#4Redborne Upper School and Community College£7,868
#5Sandy Secondary School£7,839
#6Houstone School£7,483
#7Parkfields Middle School£7,472
#8Samuel Whitbread Academy£7,456
#9Manshead Church of England Academy£7,440
#10Stratton School£7,420
#11Vandyke Upper School£7,386
#12Fulbrook School£7,346
#13Woodland Middle School Academy£7,307
#14Cedars Upper School£7,216
#15Harlington Upper School£7,195
#16Pix Brook Academy£7,035
#17Robert Bloomfield Academy£6,950
#18Queensbury Academy£6,868
#19Arnold Academy£6,765
#20Leighton Middle School£6,689
#21Priory Academy£6,639
#22Alameda Middle School£6,504
#23Holywell School£6,447
#24Etonbury Academy£6,429
#25Linslade School£5,991
#26Brooklands Middle School£4,449

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

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General Information

Who goes here

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Behaviour

Across Central Bedfordshire: suspensions by reason

Attendance

SEN

Most common needs - SEN Support

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Educational Attainment

Attainment 8 ranking

Leaver Destinations ?

GCSE Subjects Offered ?

Ofsted Rating ranking

Financials

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Leaver Destinations

GCSE Subjects Offered