Riverside Primary School

About Riverside Primary School

Riverside Primary School in Southwark is a state-funded mixed primary for children aged 3 to 11, and it is noticeably undersubscribed relative to its physical capacity. The school has 247 pupils on roll against a capacity of 315, meaning it is operating at around 78 per cent of its maximum. That spare capacity is not due to a lack of local demand, however. For the 2025/26 reception intake, the school received 71 applications for just 20 places, an oversubscription ratio of 3.55 to one, and 17 of those offers went to first-preference families. The pupil population is significantly more disadvantaged than the national average: 44.4 per cent of children are eligible for free school meals, compared with a typical national primary figure of around 23 per cent. The school does not have a religious character, and its headship is shared jointly by J Lewis and S Alder.

Academically, Riverside Primary is a strong performer, ranking third out of 60 primary schools in Southwark and in the top five per cent nationally for the proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 assessments, 91 per cent of pupils met the expected standard across all three subjects, well above the local authority average of 68 per cent. The school also excels at stretching its highest achievers: 16 per cent reached the higher standard in all three subjects, and 45 per cent did so in reading alone. Average scaled scores of 109 in both reading and maths are comfortably above the national benchmark of 100. In its most recent Ofsted inspection in December 2023, the school was rated Good overall, with an Outstanding mark for behaviour and attitudes. The early years provision, quality of education, personal development, and leadership and management were all judged Good.

The school offers a nursery provision for younger children and a broad set of facilities including a sports hall, gymnasium, ICT suite, music rooms, a sensory room, and a chapel. Sports on offer include swimming, athletics, netball, cricket, dance and gymnastics, while clubs include gardening, art club and choir. Riverside has a well-documented commitment to inclusion, with formal SEND provisions for pupils with specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, speech, language and communication needs, physical disabilities, and autistic spectrum disorder. For families considering alternatives, the nearest Outstanding-rated primary is Boutcher Church of England Primary School, one kilometre away. Riverside is a good fit for families who value strong academic outcomes in a diverse, inclusive setting, and who are comfortable with a school that is currently well below capacity despite being heavily oversubscribed for its reception intake.

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