Ofsted: Outstanding trending_up Places Available emoji_events #250 in Kent public Top 56% UK

River Primary School

verifiedData: DfE & Ofsted 2024/25

personMr Neil Brinicombe

location_onDover, CT17 0PP

language Visit Website phone 1304822516

verified

Ofsted

Outstanding

Inspected 2025

groups

Students

413

school

Expected Standard

62%

local_fire_department

Demand Ratio

1.0x

summarize

River Primary School is a Community school primary school in Dover, serving ages 4-11. Rated Outstanding by Ofsted — the highest possible grade. Ranks in the top 56% of primary schools nationally.

article

School Summary

River Primary School is a community school in Dover, Kent, admitting pupils aged 4-11. The school has approximately 394 pupils on roll, of whom 22% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, 62% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined, with 3% achieving the higher standard. The school ranks #250 of 424 primaries in Kent and #8,565 of 14,143 nationally.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2025. The school's current overall rating is Outstanding. Inspectors assessed quality of education as Good, behaviour and attitudes Good, personal development Good, and leadership and management Good.

In the most recent admissions cycle, applications were at 1.0× capacity.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 20.4:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 0.3 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: Department for Education 2024/25, Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

school

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

2025

R/W/M Expected Standard

62%

LA 61%

Reading87% LA 74%

Writing75% LA 72%

Maths70% LA 70%

Read SS

107

Maths SS

102

GPS SS

103

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2024

R/W/M Expected Standard

67%

LA 60%England 61%

Reading80% LA 75% · Eng 74%

Writing72% LA 73% · Eng 72%

Maths70% LA 69% · Eng 73%

Read SS

107

Maths SS

104

GPS SS

104

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2023

R/W/M Expected Standard

60%

LA 58%England 60%

Reading79% LA 72% · Eng 73%

Writing79% LA 72% · Eng 71%

Maths69% LA 69% · Eng 73%

Read SS

105

Maths SS

103

GPS SS

103

Progress (0 = national avg)

-1.5

Read

LA -0.4

-3.1 to 0.1

-1.8

Write

LA -0.2

-3.3 to -0.3

-2.2

Maths

LA -1.2

-3.7 to -0.8

2019

R/W/M Expected Standard

73%

LA 67%England 65%

Reading80% LA 75% · Eng 73%

Writing93% LA 81% · Eng 78%

Maths82% LA 77% · Eng 79%

Read SS

105

Maths SS

105

GPS SS

105

Progress (0 = national avg)

0.5

Read

LA 0.0

-1.1 to 2.0

2.3

Write

LA 0.1

0.8 to 3.7

0.3

Maths

LA -0.6

-1.1 to 1.7

2018

R/W/M Expected Standard

66%

LA 65%

Reading80% LA 76%

Writing85% LA 80%

Maths73% LA 73%

Read SS

106

Maths SS

104

GPS SS

106

Progress (0 = national avg)

-0.1

Read

LA 0.0

-1.6 to 1.4

1.4

Write

LA 0.4

-0.1 to 2.9

-1.3

Maths

LA -0.5

-2.7 to 0.1

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

07 January 2025

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

28 November 2013

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

09 January 2012

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

12 February 2009

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

16 June 2006

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

11 January 2006

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

12 June 2000

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2025-01-07

S5 Inspection EIF

Not Judged

info

Why no overall grade?

From autumn 2024, Ofsted stopped issuing a single headline grade (Outstanding / Good / RI / Inadequate). Instead, each inspection area is graded individually. This follows a major review after the death of headteacher Ruth Perry in 2023. The overall effectiveness field is left as "Not judged" in the published data.

Education

Good

Behaviour

Good

Development

Good

Leadership

Good

2013-11-28

S5 Inspection EIF

Outstanding

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Outstanding

2009-02-12

None EIF

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

gavel

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Official Department for Education (DfE) data. Suspensions measure temporary removals due to behavior, while exclusions represent permanent removals.

Suspension Rate

0.5%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

National average: 0.8% for this term (primary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

0.3%(1 pupils)

Spring term 2025

Represents the proportion of unique students suspended at least once in this term.

Permanent Exclusions

0pupils

verified Excellent (Zero)

National average: 1.225% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 394 pupils. During this period, there were 2 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 0.5%, which is below the termly national average of 0.8%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg
2024/25 (Spring term)	394	2	0.5%	0.8%
2024/25 (Autumn term)	391	0	0.0%	0.9%
2023/24 (Summer term)	404	0	0.0%	0.8%
2023/24 (Spring term)	408	6	1.5%	0.7%
2023/24 (Autumn term)	411	9	2.2%	0.8%
2022/23 (Summer term)	411	4	1.0%	0.7%
2022/23 (Spring term)	413	4	1.0%	0.6%
2022/23 (Autumn term)	410	13	3.2%	0.6%
2021/22 (Summer term)	420	5	1.2%	0.5%
2021/22 (Spring term)	415	2	0.5%	0.5%
2021/22 (Autumn term)	411	1	0.2%	0.5%
2020/21 (Summer term)	414	0	0.0%	0.4%
2020/21 (Spring term)	413	0	0.0%	0.1%
2020/21 (Autumn term)	411	0	0.0%	0.4%
2019/20 (Summer term)	419	1	0.2%	0.0%
2019/20 (Spring term)	419	1	0.2%	0.4%
2019/20 (Autumn term)	418	0	0.0%	0.6%
2018/19 (Summer term)	423	0	0.0%	0.4%
2018/19 (Spring term)	424	1	0.2%	0.5%
2018/19 (Autumn term)	426	0	0.0%	0.5%
2017/18 (Summer term)	427	2	0.5%	0.5%
2017/18 (Spring term)	428	1	0.2%	0.4%
2017/18 (Autumn term)	428	1	0.2%	0.5%
2016/17 (Summer term)	427	2	0.5%	0.4%
2016/17 (Spring term)	427	0	0.0%	0.4%
2016/17 (Autumn term)	427	0	0.0%	0.5%

Source: DfE Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions in England. Data represents termly statistics as published by the Department for Education.

accessibility_new

psychology_alt

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Primary areas of need currently supported by the school. A high number often indicates specialized internal units or high staff experience in these areas.

Speech, Language & Communication 19 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 18 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 16 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 12 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 8 pupils

Visual Impairment 2 pupils

Hearing Impairment 1 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 1 pupils

Top Primary Schools in Kent

Other highly-ranked schools in the same local authority

View all arrow_forward

Westgate Primary School

Good

location_on Dartford, DA1 2LP

emoji_events #1 in LA

Leigh Academy Cherry Orchard

Outstanding

location_on Ebbsfleet, DA10 1AD

emoji_events #2 in LA

Kingsdown and Ringwould Church of England Primary School

Outstanding

location_on Deal, CT14 8DD

emoji_events #3 in LA

Thornden Wood Primary School

Good

location_on Herne Bay, CT6 7RS

emoji_events #4 in LA

Leigh Academy Paddock Wood

Good

location_on Tonbridge, TN12 6JE

emoji_events #5 in LA

The Discovery School

Outstanding

location_on West Malling, ME19 4GJ

emoji_events #6 in LA

View all schools in Kent arrow_forward

River Primary School

School Summary

Academic Performance

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Distance to School

School Capacity

Primary Admission Trends

Students & School Environment

School Size

Language Diversity

Inclusive Support

Attendance

Ethnicity Breakdown

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Funding & Staffing

School Funding Allocation

Funding Breakdown

Staffing

Teacher Turnover

Top Primary Schools in Kent

Westgate Primary School

Leigh Academy Cherry Orchard

Kingsdown and Ringwould Church of England Primary School

Thornden Wood Primary School

Leigh Academy Paddock Wood

The Discovery School