Ridgeway School is a mixed special school for pupils with

physical disabilities A physical disability is a limitation on a person's physical functioning, mobility, dexterity or stamina. Other physical disabilities include impairments which limit other facets of daily living, such as respiratory disorders, blindness, epileps ...

located in

Kempston Kempston is a town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Borough of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England. It had a population of 19,330 in the 2011 census. Kempston is part of Bedford, Bedford's built-up area and is situated directly sout ...

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The school accepts pupils from all over the

Borough of Bedford The Borough of Bedford is a unitary authority area with borough status in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. Its council is based in Bedford, its namesake and principal settlement, which is the county town of Bedfordshire. The borou ...

History

Opened in January 1974 in a purpose built single storey building, Ridgeway School is situated on an educational campus in Kempston, which includes a Child Development Centre and Kempston Academy. In October 2009, Bedford Borough Council launched a consultation on the future of special education provision in the borough. The consultation included options to merge Ridgeway School with the nearby Grange School on the Ridgeway site. Another proposal involved merging the two schools with St John’s School to create one special school for the whole of the Borough of Bedford. In January 2010, Bedford Borough Council confirmed its intention to merge Ridgeway School and Grange School on the Ridgeway site in the next few years. The new combined school was planned to be rebuilt to accommodate the broader range of pupils. However, in March 2013 Grange School converted to academy status and the move is on hold. Three new classrooms were constructed at Ridgeway School for use at the start of September 2013. The classrooms are primarily used for

sixth form In the education systems of England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepare for A-l ...

classes.

Academics

The school is organised into two departments, which fit the traditional school transfer age from primary to secondary education. The Primary Department covers Early Years education, Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 (ages 3 – 11), whilst the Secondary Department covers Key Stage 3,

Key Stage 4 Key Stage 4 (KS4) is the legal term for the two years of school education which incorporate GCSEs, and other examinations, in maintained schools in England normally known as Year 10 and Year 11, when pupils are aged between 14 and 16 by August 31 ...

and Post 16 education (ages 11 – 19).

References

External links

Ridgeway School homepage
{{authority control Special schools in the Borough of Bedford Educational institutions established in 1974 1974 establishments in England Community schools in the Borough of Bedford Kempston