# Bedford Free School — Bedford, United Kingdom > School profile on SchoolBrowse, based on verified parent reviews. > HTML version: https://schoolbrowse.com/gb/bedford/bedford-free-school-13620 ## At a glance - **Type:** Secondary - **Parent rating:** 1.9/5 from 15 published reviews - **Principal:** Tom Wood ## Contact - **Address:** Bedford Free School, Cauldwell Street, Bedford, MK42 9AD - **Phone:** 01234 332299 - **Website:** http://www.bedfordfreeschool.co.uk/ - **SchoolBrowse profile:** https://schoolbrowse.com/gb/bedford/bedford-free-school-13620 ## About Bedford Free School is a comprehensive school, we do not select by ability or aptitude. We work in partnership with local families to serve the communities of Bedford and Kempston providing an academic, focussed well-rounded education to pupils aged 11-16. ## Official rankings - **Ofsted (Behaviour and Attitudes):** Outstanding — Jan 2020 - **Ofsted (Leadership and Management):** Outstanding — Jan 2020 - **Ofsted (Overall Effectiveness):** Outstanding — Jan 2020 - **Ofsted (Personal Development):** Outstanding — Jan 2020 - **Ofsted (Quality of Education):** Outstanding — Jan 2020 ## Recent parent reviews - **1/5** — Dehumanizing: This school will break you if you have mental obstacles that make learning challenging. Students are shamed for struggling with their studies, and oftentimes feel humiliated by their own teachers for needing extra help. This of course leads to students avoiding help, which then leads to low scores, which THEN leads to detention. Forcing kids to stay afterhours and do nothing productive is not going to guide them to success. As a teacher, your job is to provide a safe space for your students to a… *(Oct 2024)* - **1/5** — Don’t go here: This school is terrible there’s so much wrong with all the teachers and how they treat students and how students treat there peers as well many teachers are racist and horrible. The treatment of people is disgusting and this school is a prison and hell on earth. This school destroys students mental health and the teachers bully the students and even though the headteacher and other staff are aware they still do nothing and do not help at all. I strongly advise to not send your kids to this schoo… *(Mar 2024)* - **1/5** — Worst school: Really bad you can’t talk in the corridor an you get detention easily *(Sep 2023)* - **1/5** — Absolute joke of a school: A truly awful school don’t believe the glossy brochure and fancy presentations believe the reviews. Pupils get treated as if they are in boot camp with their relentless rules, lack of compassion, nor basic mutual respect for those same pupils they demand it from. It’s ran by an image obsessed hierarchy, and militant power hungry ‘teachers’. I am one for rules and discipline hence i was keen on this school but I got it very wrong and i agree with previous reviews it affects their mental health. W… *(Jul 2023)* - **1/5** — don’t come here: the school is racist atheist excluded a student for wearing her hijab i and classified it for being “unprofessional” and also expelled a young black man for having his hair “too short” *(Jun 2023)* - **1/5** — NEGATIVES ON BFS: Bedford Free School was a nightmare…I stayed there for two and a half year and it was horrible.I was new and scared.At first it was good but then once you settling in the staff members started showing their true colours.They were a different type of strict they fight be down everytime because I was the type of kid to have fun when they treat the kids like they are in prison.They didn’t like how I was behaving so they try there very best to bring me down and they did.Because I was new in the UK a… *(Mar 2023)* - **5/5** — You can learn at BFS: Some of the worst students have suggested writing reviews to get BFS to change its rules. But I like the rules because we can learn. Teachers can be very strict but it means that lessons aren't disrupted and we know we will get good results. There is no bullying in the corridors or toilets or outside because it is all supervised, and mobile phones are banned. However some students aren't very nice online in the evenings. All of the good students like that we can study at this school. *(Mar 2023)* - **1/5** — If you care about your child then avoid sending them here!: Almost everyone who has left this school suffers from severe mental health and struggle in social settings, comparing to other people their age. Little priority is placed on communication and social development, such as no talking when passing to your next class and keeping silent even when you are in class, otherwise you will receive a detention. The teachers can be incredibly nasty and know they will get away with it due to the ‘staff are always right’ rule. If they don’t like your child, beli… *(Mar 2023)* - **2/5** — bad school: they don’t take bullying seriously, unless a a student says something moderately rude to a teacher. *(Oct 2022)* - **1/5** — DO NOT COME HERE WHATEVER YOU DO OR HOW CLOSE IT IS TO YOUR HOUSE: most atrocious school on earth ruins your mental health completely and doesn't respect people's religious beliefs *(Sep 2022)* ## Other schools in Bedford - [Marston Vale Middle School](https://schoolbrowse.com/gb/bedford/marston-vale-middle-school-19838) — 1.2/5 (24 reviews) - [Sharnbrook Academy](https://schoolbrowse.com/gb/bedford/sharnbrook-academy-12188) — 2.0/5 (20 reviews) - [Castle Newnham School](https://schoolbrowse.com/gb/bedford/castle-newnham-school-26286) — 2.9/5 (16 reviews) - [Redborne Upper School and Community College](https://schoolbrowse.com/gb/bedford/redborne-upper-school-and-community-college-12258) — 2.3/5 (15 reviews) - [Mark Rutherford School](https://schoolbrowse.com/gb/bedford/mark-rutherford-school-14376) — 2.0/5 (14 reviews) - [Lincroft Academy](https://schoolbrowse.com/gb/bedford/lincroft-academy-12189) — 1.8/5 (14 reviews) --- Source: SchoolBrowse (https://schoolbrowse.com) — reviews and ratings are user-submitted by parents. 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