SchoolScoresIndependent school guide

River Academy

Free school · Secondary, ages 11 to 18 · Mixed · Sixth form

Part of MAIDEN ERLEGH TRUST

7 Richfield Avenue, Reading, RG1 8EQ

0118 216 0400 · School website · Map and directions

OfstedNot yet graded
Pupils373Room for 1,200
First-choice applications per place1.3211 for 162 places, September 2026

Ofsted inspection

This school hasn't had a graded Ofsted inspection yet. New schools are usually inspected within their first few years.

Read the full Ofsted reports for this school

Source: Ofsted state-funded schools inspection data.

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Results

No test or exam results have been published for this school yet.

Admissions

Apply through the council where you live, even if the school is in a different council area. This school is in Reading. The national closing date for secondary applications is 31 October, and offers are sent on 1 March.

How hard is it to get in?

For the September 2026 intake there were about 1.5 first-choice applications for every place.

Places offered162
Families who put it first211
Of those, offered a place136 (64%)
Families who listed it at all667

First-choice applications per place: 2025: 1.1 · 2026: 1.3

This isn't your chance of getting a place. That depends on the school's admissions rules (for example siblings, distance or faith) and where you live. Source: DfE applications and offers, September 2026 intake.

Admissions dates and schools in Reading

Pupils, staff and SEND

Specialist SEND provision: this school has resourced provision with 7 places for moderate learning difficulties. These places are usually allocated through the council's SEND team.

PupilsThis schoolReadingEngland
Eligible for free school meals in the last 6 years
 29.0% 23.2%* 28.9%
With an education, health and care plan
 8.6% 2.6%* 3.1%
Receiving special educational needs support
 24.7% 12.1%* 13.4%
English as an additional language
 31.7% 32.9%* 19.2%
Overall absence (sessions missed)
 5.1% 8.1%* 8.4%
Persistently absent (missed 10% or more)
 9.9% 21.9%* 23.4%
Suspensions per 100 pupils
 3.2 22.9 21.2
Pupils suspended at least once
 1.6% 7.6% 7.3%
Pupils permanently excluded1 pupil 0.54% 0.16% 0.23%
Pupils per teacher
 18.9 16.2 16.7
Pupils per adult (teachers and support staff)
 11.7 12.0 11.8
Teachers who left during the year
 8.2% 13.3%* 14.2%*

Comparisons are with secondary schools. Scales run from lower (left) to higher (right) figures. For absence and suspensions lower is better, so their scales run green to red; blue scales describe the school's pupils and staff and aren't good or bad. * Calculated by SchoolScores from the council's or England's schools, weighted by pupils (or teachers, for turnover); other figures are published by DfE. Sources: DfE school census 2024/25; DfE pupil absence 2024/25; DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions 2024/25; DfE school workforce census 2025/26; DfE teacher turnover 2024/25.

SEND provision: Get Information about Schools (DfE).

Nearby secondary schools

Straight-line distance. Distance isn't the same as a catchment area.

Questions parents ask

What is River Academy's Ofsted rating?

River Academy hasn't had a graded Ofsted inspection yet.

Is River Academy oversubscribed?

For the September 2026 intake, 211 families put River Academy as their first choice for 162 places: about 1.5 first-choice applications for every place. 136 of those families were offered a place. Whether you get a place depends on the school's admissions rules and where you live.

Sources

Spotted a mistake? Report it and we'll check it against the source.

Page updated 26 September 2026.