Riverside School

Overview

Riverside School has taken effective action to maintain the high standards identified at its previous inspection, where it was judged outstanding for overall effectiveness. The school places pupils’ well-being at the centre of all decisions, ensuring that behaviour and regulation are well managed and that pupils achieve well. Leaders provide necessary scrutiny to ensure the school continues to deliver on its ambitious vision.

Strengths

• Staff possess exceptional knowledge of individual pupils, enabling them to create "carefully personalised programmes of study" that develop academic, self-help, and social skills in the correct order.
• The school fosters a culture focused on the "enjoyment and the purposefulness of reading," using multi-sensory adaptations and personalised interventions to support early readers.
• There is a strong commitment to communication, with staff ensuring all pupils have the necessary means to be understood, resulting in improved interaction skills and "mostly calm and orderly" behaviour.
• The curriculum deliberately prepares pupils for adulthood, including teaching employment skills and providing work experience in settings such as the school’s cafés and local businesses.
• Governors provide effective challenge and regularly review development priorities to ensure the school maintains its high standards.

Areas to improve

• The report identifies no significant areas for improvement.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.