Rivertree Free School
Special / other · Bedford · MK42 8QP
Data updated
Not yet graded
No graded inspection outcome is available for this school under either the current or the previous framework. This is common for recently opened or converted schools.
Read the Ofsted report ↗At a glance
126 pupils · 63% of 200 capacity (January 2026 census)
- School type
- Free schools special
- Age range
- 2–19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Free school meals
- 34.9% of pupils (January 2026)
- Sixth form
- Yes
- Nursery
- Yes
- URN
- 150792
In figures
In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 8.7% of sessions, against 6.6% across England. It had 126 pupils at the 15 January 2026 census.
Key stage 2 results (2024/2025)
No figure is published for reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths. Key stage 2 tests measure the age-11 curriculum; most pupils at special schools are assessed under other frameworks, so 97% of special schools publish 0% here.
Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means National averages are not shown here. The England figures are dominated by mainstream schools, and pupils at a special school are working towards outcomes those measures were not designed to capture, so the comparison would mislead more than it tells you.
Special educational needs
Needs this school records that it caters for, in the order it lists them.
- Autistic Spectrum Disorder
- Severe Learning Difficulty
Provision type: SEN unit.
Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)
White British 39% (Bedford 48%, England 66%) · Any other White background 11% (Bedford 11%, England 4%) · Asian Indian 7% (Bedford 4%, England 2%) · Mixed White and Black Caribbean 6% (Bedford 4%, England 2%) · Asian Pakistani 6% (Bedford 4%, England 4%) · Any other Asian background 5% (Bedford 4%, England 2%) · Asian Bangladeshi 5% (Bedford 5%, England 2%) · Any other Mixed background 5% (Bedford 4%, England 3%) · Black African 4% (Bedford 5%, England 5%) · Any other Black background 2% (Bedford 2%, England 1%) · Black Caribbean 2% (Bedford 1%, England 1%) · Mixed White and Asian 2% (Bedford 3%, England 1%) · Mixed White and Black African 2% (Bedford 2%, England 1%) · Not recorded 2% (Bedford 1%, England 2%) · Any other ethnic group 1% (Bedford 2%, England 2%)
Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures
Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)
Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms · how absence is measured
Staffing
Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.
Vacancies (November 2025)
0% of teaching posts vacant, 0% filled temporarily · England, special schools and PRUs: 0.68% vacant, 1.02% temporary
Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)
27.3% of teachers took sickness absence, 1.3 days each on average · England, all state-funded schools: 61.8%, 8.1 days
Teacher pay (November 2025)
Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £48,167; 20% on the leadership pay range · England, special schools and PRUs: £53,604, 18.3%
Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted
The area around the school
- Child poverty (IDACI)
- 5/10around the middle for England
- Overall deprivation (IMD)
- 6/10around the middle for England
| Census 2021 | This area | England |
|---|---|---|
| Adults with a degree or higher | 30.3% | 33.9% |
| Adults with no qualifications | 14.3% | 18.1% |
| In managerial or professional work | 33.8% | 33.2% |
| Households deprived in two or more ways | 15% | 18.1% |
| Residents in very good health | 42.4% | 48.5% |
| Homes owned by the occupier | 71.4% | 62.3% |
| Social housing | 9.7% | 17.1% |
| Privately rented | 18.9% | 20.5% |
| Detached houses | 21.5% | 22.9% |
| Flats | 21.2% | 22.2% |
| Homes with four or more bedrooms | 17.5% | 21.1% |
| Households with no car or van | 16% | 23.5% |
These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01017510 · how to read area figures
What homes cost nearby
- Median sale price
- £290,000342 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
- Typical range
- £247,000–£355,000the middle half of sales
- England median
- £300,000all sales over the same period
Homes around this school are cheaper than most school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.
Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.
Roads around the school
- Child pedestrian casualties
- 2an urban school averages 2.0
- Collisions at school-run times
- 1an urban school averages 5.7
- All reported collisions
- 15an urban school averages 30.5
- Of those, serious or fatal
- 1an urban school averages 6.1
A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted
Nearby schools
See all schools run by Bedford Inclusive Learning and Training Trust →