Vandyke Upper School

General Information

Address: Vandyke Road, Leighton Buzzard, LU7 3DY
Phone: 01525636700
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mrs Leah Ferguson-Moore
Age range: 13-18 years
Sixth form: Yes
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: None
Number of pupils: 1517
School capacity: 1440
Pupils eligible for free school meals: 183
% eligible for free school meals: 16.6%
Nursery provision: No

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.

Behaviour information for this school has not been added yet.

Attendance

Overall absence: 7.8%
Persistently absent pupils: 20.7%
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

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

SEN provision information for this school has not been added yet.

Pupils on SEN Support: 11.9%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 4.6%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Social, emotional and mental health: 103 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 33 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 27 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 5 pupils
Vision impairment: 3 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 30 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 14 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 9 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 9 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 5 pupils

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 –

Behaviour

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Openness

–

Teaching Quality

–

School Ethos

–

Ability to Deal with Problems

–

Headteacher Approval

–

Would recommend –

Give this school your first review

Educational Attainment

Good 2024 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.

Educational attainment data for this school has not been added yet.

Attainment 8 score: 48.2
Data year: 2024/25

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.

Ranked #2 of 14 Attainment 8 schools of this type in the area

#1Cedars Upper School48.5
#2Vandyke Upper School48.2
#3Harlington Upper School47.8
#4Samuel Whitbread Academy46.7

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

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

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 93.0%
Went into further education: 87.0%
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
Media Studies
Art & Design
Physics (General)
Sports Studies
Biology
Chemistry (General)
French Language
Photography
Statistics
German
Computer Science
Speech & Drama
Italian
Spanish
Polish

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

Ranked #16 of 18 Ofsted Rating schools of this type in the area

#14Redborne Upper School and Community CollegeGood
#15Samuel Whitbread AcademyGood
#16Vandyke Upper SchoolGood
#17Woodland Middle School AcademyGood
#18Fulbrook SchoolRequires improvement

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.

#1Alameda Middle SchoolGood
#2Arnold AcademyGood
#3Brooklands Middle SchoolGood
#4Cedars Upper SchoolGood
#5Etonbury AcademyGood
#6Harlington Upper SchoolGood
#7Holywell SchoolGood
#8Leighton Middle SchoolGood
#9Linslade SchoolGood
#10Manshead Church of England AcademyGood
#11Parkfields Middle SchoolGood
#12Pix Brook AcademyGood
#13Queensbury AcademyGood
#14Redborne Upper School and Community CollegeGood
#15Samuel Whitbread AcademyGood
#16Vandyke Upper SchoolGood
#17Woodland Middle School AcademyGood
#18Fulbrook SchoolRequires improvement

Financials

Financial summary information for this school has not been added yet.

Spending per pupil: £7,386 (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.

Ranked #11 of 25 Spending Per Pupil schools of this type in the area

#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

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.

#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
#21Alameda Middle School£6,504
#22Holywell School£6,447
#23Etonbury Academy£6,429
#24Linslade School£5,991
#25Brooklands Middle School£4,449

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

General Information

Behaviour

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