Portal House School
Community special school · Ages 11–16 · Dover, Kent
Portal House School is a special school in Dover, Kent for ages 11–16. Its latest Ofsted outcome is Standards maintained, from the inspection on 8 January 2025.
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Key facts
- Address
- Sea Street, St Margaret's-At-Cliffe, Dover, CT15 6SS
- Type
- Community special school
- Ages
- 11–16
- Council
- Kent
- Pupils on roll
- 80 January 2026 school census
- Free school meals
- 68.8% of pupils eligible
- Pupils per teacher
- 3.9
Official record: Get Information about Schools · as at 15 September 2026
Ofsted
Standards maintained Inspected 8 January 2025
Strengths
- “Pupils enjoy coming to this well-organised and friendly school.”
- “Though many have been out of education for long periods of time or had poor experiences in previous settings, most settle quickly on arrival.”
- “When pupils struggle to attend for whatever reason, everybody works tirelessly to find the right solution, including through the use of an impressive online learning programme.”
To improve
- “Despite this, staff occasionally design tasks that do not fully support pupils’ needs closely enough.”
- “Despite the school’s ongoing efforts, the attendance of some pupils is too low.”
- “They know that more needs to be done, but pleasingly, some improvement is now showing over time.”
Safeguarding: Effective
Quoted from the Ofsted report published 12 February 2025 (read the report). Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0.
Exam results
| Measure | School | England |
|---|---|---|
| GCSE English and maths, grade 5 or above (2024/25) | 0% | 45% |
| Attainment 8 score (2024/25) | 13.2 | 46 |
Department for Education school performance data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
What a pass unlocks for Portal House School
- Earlier exam results, 2022/23 to 2023/24
- Where pupils go after they leave
- Crime, sold prices and rents, broadband and transport around the school
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Nearby special, independent and other schools
Straight-line distance, in Kent.
- Learning Opportunities Centre Secondary 2.2 mi No Ofsted grade
- Ripplevale School 3.2 mi No Ofsted grade
- Dover College 3.4 mi No Ofsted grade
- The Sallygate School 4.5 mi No Ofsted grade
- Elms School 4.6 mi School remains Good
- Brewood Secondary School 4.8 mi No Ofsted grade
- Northbourne Park School 5.8 mi No Ofsted grade
- The Davenport School 7.6 mi No Ofsted grade