A school for special education needs (SEN) children has retained its “outstanding” rating.

Bower Grove in Fant Lane, Maidstone has scored top marks again after a recent Ofsted inspection.

The school looks after 225 pupils aged between four and 16 with learning difficulties, including autism and ADHD.

An inspection took place on November 19 and 20, with the report being published on December 20.

It was rated “outstanding” overall and for each category.

These included the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes and personal development.

In the report, the school was praised for its strong support for pupils’ emotional and social development, helping them to build “resilience and confidence”, and making them “feel protected and enjoy coming to school”.

Assessors said: “Pupils are helped to identify what may cause them to experience challenges.

“They are taught strategies to help them to understand and manage their emotions and how to respond to different situations.”

This approach means incidents of behaviour in and outside of the classroom reduce over time.

Inspectors also found staff have “high aspirations” for children, encouraging them to be ambitious and preparing them for adulthood through trips and work experiences.

They said: “The school works with local colleges to enhance the broad curriculum offer with a range of vocational experiences.

“This includes bricklaying, motor mechanics and public service.

“The school supports pupils to leave with the qualifications they need to continue their education or for employment.”

Assessors noted many pupils have missed significant amounts of schooling prior to joining but Bower Grove understands the challenges affecting why students struggle to attend regularly.

“They work with pupils, parents and carers and other professionals to identify solutions to increase attendance.

“This includes intensive work with families, mentoring support and social activities.

“As a result, for many pupils, attendance rates do improve over time.”

Since 2019, the school has been recognised as an “outstanding” institution.

Bower Grove posted the good news of its latest inspection online saying it is a “fantastic way to end the term and year”.

One parent said: “Well done it's very well deserved, such an amazing school with fantastic staff who go above and beyond for all their pupils.”

Another added: “Haven’t a fault at all with this school, it is an outstanding school through and through.”

A third parent said: “I've been very impressed - thank you for all the staff's hard work.”