BSV Vanguard Short Term Bond

Important information about access to shareholder reports

Beginning on January 1, 2021, as permitted by regulations adopted by the SEC, paper copies of your fund’s annual and semiannual shareholder reports will no longer be sent to you by mail, unless you specifically request them. Instead, you will be notified by mail each time a report is posted on the website and will be provided with a link to access the report.

If you have already elected to receive shareholder reports electronically, you will not be affected by this change and do not need to take any action. You may elect to receive shareholder reports and other communications from the fund electronically by contacting your financial intermediary (such as a broker-dealer or bank) or, if you invest directly with the fund, by calling Vanguard at one of the phone numbers on the back cover of this prospectus or by logging on to vanguard.com.

You may elect to receive paper copies of all future shareholder reports free of charge. If you invest through a financial intermediary, you can contact the intermediary to request that you continue to receive paper copies. If you invest directly with the fund, you can call Vanguard at one of the phone numbers on the back cover of this prospectus or log on to vanguard.com. Your election to receive paper copies will apply to all the funds you hold through an intermediary or directly with Vanguard.

Investment Objective

The Fund seeks to track the performance of a market-weighted bond index with a short-term dollar-weighted average maturity.

Fees and Expenses

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy and hold Investor Shares or Admiral Shares of the Fund.

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The Fund invests by sampling the Index, meaning that it holds a range of securities that, in the aggregate, approximates the full Index in terms of key risk factors and other characteristics. All of the Fund’s investments will be selected through the sampling process, and at least 80% of the Fund’s assets will be invested in bonds held in the Index. The Fund maintains a dollar-weighted average maturity consistent with that of the Index. As of December 31, 2019, the dollar-weighted average maturity of the Index was 2.8 years.

Principal Risks

The Fund is designed for investors with a low tolerance for risk, but you could still lose money by investing in it. The Fund is subject to the following risks, which could affect the Fund's performance, and the level of risk may vary based on market conditions:

•  Income risk, which is the chance that the Fund's income will decline because of falling interest rates. Income risk is generally high for short-term bond funds, so investors should expect the Fund's monthly income to fluctuate.

•  Interest rate risk, which is the chance that bond prices will decline because of rising interest rates. Interest rate risk should be low for the Fund because it invests primarily in short-term bonds, whose prices are less sensitive to interest rate changes than are the prices of longer-term bonds.

•  Credit risk, which is the chance that a bond issuer will fail to pay interest or principal in a timely manner or that negative perceptions of the issuer’s ability to make such payments will cause the price of that bond to decline. Credit risk should be low for the Fund because it purchases only bonds that are of investment-grade quality.

•  Index sampling risk, which is the chance that the securities selected for the Fund, in the aggregate, will not provide investment performance matching that of the Fund's target index. Index sampling risk for the Fund is expected to be low.

•  Liquidity risk, which is the chance that the Fund may not be able to sell a security in a timely manner at a desired price.

An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.

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Annual Total Returns

The following bar chart and table are intended to help you understand the risks of investing in the Fund. Because the eligibility requirements for the Fund's Admiral Shares were recently changed, annual total returns for the Fund's Admiral Shares are relevant for most investors. Accordingly, the information presented in the bar chart reflects the performance of the Fund's Admiral Shares. The bar chart shows how the performance of the Fund‘s Admiral Shares has varied from one calendar year to another over the periods shown. The table shows how the average annual total returns of the share classes presented compare with those of the Fund's target index, which has investment characteristics similar to those of the Fund. Keep in mind that the Fund's past performance (before and after taxes) does not indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available on our website at vanguard.com/performance or by calling Vanguard toll-free at 800-662-7447.

Annual Total Returns — Vanguard Short-Term Bond Index Fund Admiral Shares

During the periods shown in the bar chart, the highest and lowest returns for a calendar quarter were:

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Average Annual Total Returns for Periods Ended December 31, 2019

	1 Year	5 Years	10 Years
Vanguard Short-Term Bond Index Fund Admiral Shares
Return Before Taxes	4.86%	1.95%	2.03%
Return After Taxes on Distributions	3.90	1.20	1.31
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	2.87	1.16	1.28
Vanguard Short-Term Bond Index Fund Investor Shares
Return Before Taxes	4.77%	1.87%	1.94%
Bloomberg Barclays U.S. 1-5 Year Gov/Credit Float Adjusted Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses, or taxes)	5.01%	2.03%	2.13%

Actual after-tax returns depend on your tax situation and may differ from those shown in the preceding table. When after-tax returns are calculated, it is assumed that the shareholder was in the highest individual federal marginal income tax bracket at the time of each distribution of income or capital gains or upon redemption. State and local income taxes are not reflected in the calculations. Please note that after-tax returns are shown only for the Admiral Shares and may differ for each share class. After-tax returns are not relevant for a shareholder who holds fund shares in a tax-deferred account, such as an individual retirement account or a 401(k) plan. Also, figures captioned Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares may be higher than other figures for the same period if a capital loss occurs upon redemption and results in an assumed tax deduction for the shareholder.

Investment Advisor

The Vanguard Group, Inc. (Vanguard)

Portfolio Manager

Joshua C. Barrickman, CFA, Principal of Vanguard and co-head of Vanguard’s Fixed Income Indexing Americas. He has managed the Fund since 2013.

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Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

You may purchase or redeem shares online through our website (vanguard.com), by mail (The Vanguard Group, P.O. Box 1110, Valley Forge, PA 19482-1110), or by telephone (800-662-2739). The minimum investment amount required to open and maintain a Fund account for Admiral Shares is $3,000. The minimum investment amount required to add to an existing Fund account is generally $1. Investor Shares are generally available only to Vanguard funds that operate as funds of funds and to certain retirement plan clients that receive recordkeeping services from Vanguard. Financial intermediaries, institutional clients, and Vanguard-advised clients should contact Vanguard for information on special eligibility rules that may apply to them regarding Admiral Shares. If you are investing through an intermediary, please contact that firm directly for more information regarding your eligibility. If you are investing through an employer-sponsored retirement or savings plan, your plan administrator or your benefits office can provide you with detailed information on how you can invest through your plan.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions may be taxable as ordinary income or capital gain. If you are investing through a tax-advantaged account, such as an IRA or an employer-sponsored retirement or savings plan, special tax rules apply.

Payments to Financial Intermediaries

The Fund and its investment advisor do not pay financial intermediaries for sales of Fund shares.

CFA^® is a registered trademark owned by CFA Institute.

BLOOMBERG is a trademark and service mark of Bloomberg Finance L.P. BARCLAYS is a trademark and service mark of Barclays Bank Plc, used under license. Bloomberg Finance L.P. and its affiliates, including Bloomberg Index Services Limited (BISL) (collectively, Bloomberg), or Bloomberg’s licensors, own all proprietary rights in the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. 1-5 Year Government/Credit Float Adjusted Index (the Index or Bloomberg Barclays Index).

Neither Barclays Bank Plc, Barclays Capital Inc., or any affiliate (collectively Barclays) or Bloomberg is the issuer or producer of the Short-Term Bond Index Fund and neither Bloomberg nor Barclays has any responsibilities, obligations or duties to investors in the Short-Term Bond Index Fund. The Index is licensed for use by The Vanguard Group, Inc. (Vanguard) as the sponsor of the Short-Term Bond Index Fund. Bloomberg and Barclays’ only relationship with Vanguard in respect to the Index is the licensing of the Index, which is determined, composed and calculated by BISL, or any successor thereto, without regard to the Issuer or the Short-Term Bond Index Fund or the owners of the Short-Term Bond Index Fund.

Additionally, Vanguard may for itself execute transaction(s) with Barclays in or relating to the Index in connection with the Short-Term Bond Index Fund. Investors acquire the Short-Term Bond Index Fund from Vanguard and investors neither acquire any interest in the Index nor enter into any relationship of any kind whatsoever with Bloomberg or Barclays upon making an investment in the Short-Term Bond Index Fund. The Short-Term Bond Index Fund is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Bloomberg or Barclays. Neither Bloomberg nor Barclays makes any representation or warranty, express or implied regarding the advisability of investing in the Short-Term Bond Index Fund or the advisability of investing in securities generally or the ability of the Index to track corresponding or relative market performance. Neither Bloomberg nor Barclays has passed on the legality or suitability of the Short-Term Bond Index Fund with respect to any person or entity. Neither Bloomberg nor Barclays is responsible for and has not participated in the determination of the timing of, prices at, or quantities of the Short-Term Bond Index Fund to be

issued. Neither Bloomberg nor Barclays has any obligation to take the needs of the Issuer or the owners of the Short-Term Bond Index Fund or any other third party into consideration in determining, composing or calculating the Index. Neither Bloomberg nor Barclays has any obligation or liability in connection with administration, marketing or trading of the Short-Term Bond Index Fund.

The licensing agreement between Bloomberg and Barclays is solely for the benefit of Bloomberg and Barclays and not for the benefit of the owners of the Short-Term Bond Index Fund, investors or other third parties. In addition, the licensing agreement between Vanguard and Bloomberg is solely for the benefit of Vanguard and Bloomberg and not for the benefit of the owners of the Short-Term Bond Index Fund, investors or other third parties.

NEITHER BLOOMBERG NOR BARCLAYS SHALL HAVE ANY LIABILITY TO THE ISSUER, INVESTORS OR TO OTHER THIRD PARTIES FOR THE QUALITY, ACCURACY AND/OR COMPLETENESS OF THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN OR FOR INTERRUPTIONS IN THE DELIVERY OF THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX. NEITHER BLOOMBERG NOR BARCLAYS MAKES ANY WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY THE ISSUER, THE INVESTORS OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. NEITHER BLOOMBERG NOR BARCLAYS MAKES ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, AND EACH HEREBY EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE WITH RESPECT TO THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. BLOOMBERG RESERVES THE RIGHT TO CHANGE THE METHODS OF CALCULATION OR PUBLICATION, OR TO CEASE THE CALCULATION OR PUBLICATION OF THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX, AND NEITHER BLOOMBERG NOR BARCLAYS SHALL BE LIABLE FOR ANY MISCALCULATION OF OR ANY INCORRECT, DELAYED OR INTERRUPTED PUBLICATION WITH RESPECT TO THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX. NEITHER BLOOMBERG NOR BARCLAYS SHALL BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY SPECIAL, INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, OR ANY LOST PROFITS AND EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH, RESULTING FROM THE USE OF THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN OR WITH RESPECT TO THE SHORT-TERM BOND INDEX FUND.

None of the information supplied by Bloomberg or Barclays and used in this publication may be reproduced in any manner without the prior written permission of both Bloomberg and Barclays Capital, the investment banking division of Barclays Bank Plc. Barclays Bank Plc is registered in England No. 1026167. Registered office 1 Churchill Place London E14 5HP.

Vanguard Short-Term Bond Index Fund Investor Shares—Fund Number 132
Vanguard Short-Term Bond Index Fund Admiral Shares—Fund Number 5132

To request additional information about the Fund, please visit vanguard.com or contact us at 800-662-7447.

© 2020 The Vanguard Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

Vanguard Marketing Corporation, Distributor.

SP 132 042020