Harlington Upper School
Harlington Upper School is a mixed secondary academy in Dunstable, Central Bedfordshire Council, teaching 1,156 pupils aged 13 to 18. Ofsted rated it Good at its last graded inspection in October 2023. In 2024–2025, GCSE Attainment 8 was 47.8 (England 46.1). Its 2025–2026 calendar lists 15 holidays and 4 INSET days.
Ofsted inspection
The latest published Ofsted judgement for Harlington Upper School.
Scale: Outstanding Good Requires improvement Inadequate
Term dates & holidays 2025–2026
Autumn, spring and summer terms, half-terms, INSET days and bank holidays for Harlington Upper School.
- 1 Training Day
- 2 School Holiday
- 3 First Day of Autumn Term
- 10 Training Day
- 27–31 Autumn Half Term
- 28 Training Day
- 22–31 Christmas Holiday
- 25 Christmas Day (Bank Holiday)
- 26 Boxing Day (Bank Holiday)
- 1–2 Christmas Holiday
- 1 New Year's Day (Bank Holiday)
- 16–20 Spring Half Term
- 30–31 Easter Holiday
- 1–10 Easter Holiday
- 3 Good Friday (Bank Holiday)
- 6 Easter Monday (Bank Holiday)
- 13 Training Day
- 4 Early May Bank Holiday
- 25–29 Summer Half Term
- 25 Spring Bank Holiday
- 24–31 Summer Holiday
- 1–31 Summer Holiday
- 31 Summer Bank Holiday
- 1 Summer Holiday
Key dates (2025–2026)
- Training Day Sep 1, 2025 Inset Day
- School Holiday Sep 2, 2025 Holiday
- First Day of Autumn Term Sep 3, 2025 Term
- Autumn Half Term Oct 27-31, 2025 Holiday
- Training Day Oct 10, 2025 Inset Day
- Training Day Nov 28, 2025 Inset Day
- Christmas Holiday Dec 22, 2025 - Jan 2, 2026 Holiday
- New Year's Day (Bank Holiday) Jan 1, 2026 Holiday
- Spring Half Term Feb 16-20, 2026 Holiday
- Easter Holiday Mar 30 - Apr 10, 2026 Holiday
- Good Friday (Bank Holiday) Apr 3, 2026 Holiday
- Easter Monday (Bank Holiday) Apr 6, 2026 Holiday
- Training Day Apr 13, 2026 Inset Day
- Early May Bank Holiday May 4, 2026 Holiday
- Summer Half Term May 25-29, 2026 Holiday
- Spring Bank Holiday May 25, 2026 Holiday
- Summer Holiday Jul 24, 2026 - Sep 1, 2026 Holiday
- Summer Bank Holiday Aug 31, 2026 Holiday
- Christmas Day (Bank Holiday) Dec 25, 2025 Holiday
- Boxing Day (Bank Holiday) Dec 26, 2025 Holiday
Exam results & performance
The measures that carry the most signal. Open a section to compare Harlington Upper School with Central Bedfordshire Council and England.
Key stage 4 (GCSE) 47.8 Attainment 8 score
Year 11 results across eight qualifications, including English and maths.
This school Central Bedfordshire Council England
16 to 18 (A level & sixth form) 31.41 A level average point score
Results for students finishing post-16 study.
This school Central Bedfordshire Council England
Attendance 19.6% Persistently absent pupils
Absence across the whole school year.
This school Central Bedfordshire Council England
What pupils do after GCSEs 93% In education, apprenticeship or work
Still in education, an apprenticeship or work a year after key stage 4.
This school Central Bedfordshire Council England
What students do after 16 to 18 study 86% In education, apprenticeship or work
Destinations the year after finishing post-16 study.
This school Central Bedfordshire Council England
About this data source & caveats
Progress 8 is not published for 2024–2025. This year group missed their key stage 2 tests in 2020, so there is no baseline to measure progress from.
Attendance comparisons are pupil-weighted averages we calculate from every school’s published absence figure — the DfE absence file has no local authority or England rows of its own.
We show the headline measures only. Threshold and curriculum-policy figures — grade 4+ in English and maths, EBacc entry and points, the per-subject key stage 2 breakdown, academic and applied splits at 16 to 18 — reflect admissions and curriculum choices more than school quality, so they are left to GOV.UK. Progress measures matter most because they compare pupils with others who started at the same level; attainment on its own largely tracks a school’s intake.
Figures are the Department for Education’s official published results for Harlington Upper School. Results are suppressed where too few pupils were entered. England figures are the average for state-funded schools. “Top x%” is this school’s position among all schools in England with a published figure for that measure — the DfE does not publish league table rankings.
Source: Compare school and college performance, Department for Education. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Location & catchment area
Indicative only. This is a nearest-school (Voronoi) estimate — the area closer to Harlington Upper School than to any other secondary school. Real admissions depend on the school’s own policy (straight-line distance, siblings, faith, feeder schools and available places) and change each year. Always confirm with the school and local authority admissions team.