School Chooser

Rivermead Primary School

Primary · ages 4-11MixedAcademy429 pupilsReadingWokingham
School Chooser Score
75
Above
similar schools
Likely range 60 to 85
Out of 100. Better than 27% of the 50 schools most like it. Much the same over the last five years.
OfstedAs expected teachingOfsted report card, March 2026
Reached the expected level at 1170%England 63%
Attendance95.2%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families6%Far fewer than most schools
Parents would recommend98%119 Parent View responses
PlacesFull429 pupils, 420 places

Rivermead Primary School is a converter academy in Reading for boys and girls aged 4 to 11. It has 429 pupils, 9 more than it has places for. About 6 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. We give it 75 out of 100. That puts it above schools like it, ahead of 27% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted visited in March 2026 and gave it a report card, which is below.

Loddon Bridge Road, Woodley, Reading, RG5 4BS0118 954 0770rivermead.wokingham.sch.ukMr Brian Prebble headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted visited on 10 March 2026. Instead of one overall word, it now gives a grade for each part of school life. Read the full report on Ofsted's website.

TeachingOfsted calls this “curriculum and teaching”
As expected
Achievement
As expected
Behaviour and attendanceOfsted calls this “attendance and behaviour”
Strong
Support for every childOfsted calls this “inclusion”
Strong
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development and wellbeing”
Strong
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and governance”
As expected
Early years
Strong
SafeguardingAre pupils kept safe?
Pupils are kept safe
Met
Ofsted's scale:ExceptionalStrong standardExpected standardNeeds attentionUrgent improvement

Ofsted says these new grades can't be lined up against the old one-word grades.

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

64 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England.

Reached the expected level at 1170%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level8%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score109.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score108.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 62%62%20172018: 64%64%20182019: 56%56%20192023: 65%65%20232024: 66%66%20242025: 70%70%2025
Since 2017: +8%Steady overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023†2019†2018†2017†WokinghamEngland
Pupils tested646465595655
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths70%66%65%56%64%62%72%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths8%11%15%5%14%11%12%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score109.0107.0107.0102.0104.0104.0108.1105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score108.0107.0107.0103.0105.0105.0106.8104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score109.0108.0108.0106.0106.0107.0107.4105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard86%78%77%61%79%75%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard84%91%80%75%77%78%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)76%72%77%75%79%73%
Reading progressReading progress score+1.1-2.9-1.5-1.1
Maths progressMaths progress score+1.9-3.3-0.5+0.3
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged18%20%73%50%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged81%63%62%64%

There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.

† These results are for Rivermead Primary School, the school this one replaced in January 2023. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Does every child do well here?

A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. 1 of the 4 gaps is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.

At the end of primary school, 2025

Reached the expected level at 11Low-income pupils vs other pupils
18%81%
Gap 63 ptsEngland 21 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
76%62%
Gap 14 ptsEngland 5 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Pupils learning English vs all pupils
67%70%
Gap 3 ptsEngland 4 pts
Reached the higher level at 11Low-income pupils vs all pupils
0%8%
Gap 8 ptsEngland 5 pts
First groupSecond groupEngland, each group

Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Full431 pupils for 420 places, 2024/25
103% full

The school is full, with 11 more pupils than it has places for. More families apply than can get in, so things like how close you live and whether an older brother or sister is already here decide who gets a place.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Wokingham council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

What parents say

Would recommend the school98%England 87%
My child is happy here98%agree or strongly agree
My child feels safe98%
Positive overall93%
My child is happy at this school
98%England 89%
My child feels safe at this school
98%England 90%
Pupils are well behavedThe school makes sure its pupils are well behaved
93%England 83%
Has your child been bullied here?Parents answering yes
13% yesEngland 18%
Bullying was dealt with quickly and effectivelyOnly parents whose child was bullied
75%England 50%
My child gets the right support to learn well
96%England 85%
Does your child have SEND?Parents answering yes
30% yesEngland 26%
The school gives them the support they needOnly parents of children with SEND
95%England 71%
The school communicates well with me
90%England 80%
My concerns have been dealt with properlyWhen I have raised concerns
77%England 69%
Decisions put the child's best interests first
91%England 82%
I would recommend this school
98%England 87%
Overall view of the school is positive
93%England 82%
Strongly agreeAgreeDon't knowDisagreeStrongly disagreeEngland, agree or yes

From Ofsted's Parent View survey: 119 parents answered in the year to 6 April 2026. Parents choose whether to fill it in, and many only do so when an inspection is coming, so don't read too much into small differences. The England figures are the average for primary schools with enough answers to publish.

Who goes here

Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.

Pupils on roll429Census January 2026
Places420102% full
Pupils from low-income families6%6% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English16%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support16%68 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan3%11 pupils with a plan
Average class size30.813 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils54%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)6%£38,750 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls223 / 206
White British pupils69%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 30.2 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 31.1 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (23), SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need (22), language and communications needs (17), Autistic spectrum disorder (10), Other difficulty or disability (3), Multi-sensory impairment (2).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census2026202520242023
Pupils on roll429421425426
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals6%9%9%7%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language16%14%16%17%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support13%7%8%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans2%1%2%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 95.2% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance95.2%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school13.1%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils0.02024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.0%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/22†2020/21†2018/19†England
Sessions missedOverall absence4.9%4.9%5.0%6.6%2.6%3.7%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence3.8%3.7%4.2%5.9%2.3%3.2%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.0%1.1%0.8%0.7%0.3%0.5%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence13.1%12.9%10.3%18.6%4.4%7.6%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate0.00.00.5
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions000

† These attendance figures are for Rivermead Primary School, the school this one replaced in January 2023. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers18.7full-time equivalent, 21 people
Pupils per teacher22.9Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants11.5full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£46,838
Teachers who left in the year10%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher2.52024/25

Money

From the academy accounts return, year to August 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£5,482England £7,128. Total £2.3m
Income per pupil£5,967England £7,587. Total £2.5m
Spent on teachers per pupil£2,805England £3,405
Money in reserve7%Not much put by: £174k, £414 per pupil. England 9%
Money in against money out+£204kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£5,482spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m10312 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate68 per 1,000 people25% lower than the England average
Typical house price£490,000Wokingham
Nearest bus stop120 mColemans Moor Lane Top, 15 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest primary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Beechwood Primary SchoolAcademy640 m244Requires improvement 20235Compare
South Lake Primary SchoolAcademy790 m443No overall grade 202586Compare
Woodley CofE Primary SchoolChurch of England0.7 miles291Good 202458Compare
St Dominic Savio Catholic Primary SchoolRoman Catholic0.8 miles420Outstanding 2020100Compare
Willow Bank Infant SchoolAcademy0.9 miles152Good 2022Compare
Willow Bank Junior SchoolAcademy0.9 miles235Good 2023Compare
Highwood Primary SchoolAcademy0.9 miles429Good 2021Compare
Loddon Primary SchoolCouncil1.2 miles511Good 202377Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Rivermead Primary School with the 48 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 48 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats27%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the lower half of its group. Its score of 75 is 15 points below the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 49 · middle 89 · highest 100100

Nearby schools with a similar mix of pupils that score higher

Of those 48 schools, these are within 25 km and score at least five points more than Rivermead Primary School, nearest first. A school with the same kind of pupils and a higher score is the fairest sign that it gets more out of them.

SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Velmead Junior SchoolCouncil12.4 miles373Good 202393Compare
Butlers Court SchoolCouncil15.4 miles419Good 202490Compare

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 75 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 75% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 60 to 85. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.

What we looked atHow much it countsAgainst schools like itEffect on the scoreBased on
Results over three years25%above
+0.17
2025 and 2024 results; 64 pupils
Ofsted inspection20%in line
+0.03
Ofsted report card, 0.5 years old
Progress pupils make20%in line
+0.00
Contextualised attainment (no DfE progress measure available); 64 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%above
+0.03
results and attendance rising year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%in line
+0.02
2024/25; 381 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%in line
+0.00
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 64 pupils
What parents say5%well above
+0.05
Ofsted's Parent View survey, allowing for how many parents replied; 119 responses

Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.

Questions parents ask

Is Rivermead Primary School a good school?

Yes, going by the figures. Rivermead Primary School scores 75 out of 100. That is above schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 27% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 60 to 85, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.

What is Rivermead Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted no longer gives schools one overall grade. When it visited on 10 March 2026 it rated teaching as as expected, achievement as as expected, behaviour and attendance as strong, leadership as as expected.

How good are Rivermead Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 70% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 8% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does Rivermead Primary School have?

429 pupils aged 4 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 420 places, so it is 102% full.

Is Rivermead Primary School oversubscribed?

Probably. The school was full in 2024/25, with 11 more pupils than places. How close you live, and the school's other admissions rules, decide who gets in.

What is attendance like at Rivermead Primary School?

Pupils were in school 95.2% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 13% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

What do parents say about Rivermead Primary School?

98% of the 119 parents who answered Ofsted's Parent View survey would recommend it to other parents, and 98% say their child is happy there. Across England, 87% of parents would recommend their child's school.

How big are the classes at Rivermead Primary School?

The average class had 30.8 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. 54% of classes had more than 30 pupils.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
Loddon Bridge Road, Woodley, Reading, RG5 4BS
Telephone
0118 954 0770
Website
www.rivermead.wokingham.sch.uk
Headteacher
Mr Brian Prebble
Type of school
Converter academy (Academy converter, academies)
Phase
Primary school, ages 4-11
Gender
Mixed
Multi-academy trust
Bellevue Place Education Trust (12 schools)
Local authority
Wokingham
Ward
Loddon
Constituency
Earley and Woodley
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
Opened
1 January 2023 (academy converter)
URN
149521 · LAESTAB 8722167 · UKPRN 10091675
Formerly
Rivermead Primary School

Where these figures come from