Ipswich provision helps students rediscover joy of learning

Supporting students is what Ipswich-based Reboot Education does best. Founded in October 2023 by Paul Arch and Viv Hunt, the alternative education provision helps students rediscover the “joy of being a successful learner”.

Paul and Viv worked as headteacher and deputy head at the same Suffolk primary school and opened Reboot Education out of frustration for the lack of suitable provision placements for the students they were working with.

Reboot Education works with students aged seven to 16 years old who are struggling to maintain a mainstream education place or have no mainstream school place due to SEND needs not being met.

Students attend the provision between one and three days per week, with the main purpose to deliver its 3R plan: rebuild, rediscover and reintegrate.

Co-CEO and director of education Paul said: “We want to rebuild our students’ confidence and self-belief, help them to rediscover the joy of being a successful learner, and finally reintegrate them into a school, whether it be a mainstream or specialist school.”

Students are taught a core set of digital skills that they can take to their next educational setting or future employment, covering topics including coding, website design, video editing and more.

Other skills include a weekly cookery session, English and maths lessons, as well as enrichment activities such as free climbing.

Paul describes Reboot Education as “not a school, but a home of learning”, making students feel both comfortable and safe.

“The core aim of all our curriculum offerings is that our students leave each session having achieved a level of success,” Paul said Even though it seems the provision’s success and growth has come quickly, it has been many years in the making.

Students attend the provision between one to three days a week(Image: Gemma Wythe Photography)

Paul and Viv have more than 25 years of experience, with Paul working as a headteacher for 12 years and Viv for 10 years as a SENCo and senior school leader.

“These experiences allowed us to ensure the provision was set-up in a way that would meet the highest quality assurances that schools and local authorities would require but also allowed us to identify what was missing in terms of provisions currently available,” Paul said.

Reboot Education keeps its student numbers on site small, and with one adult to every two students, staff are on hand to support them when needed.

Reboot Education’s core curriculum, as well as its commitment to supporting students, helped it win the Small Business of the Year award, sponsored by Suffolk Business Board, at the EADT Business Awards 2025.

Paul describes winning the award as a “total shock”.

“Both Viv and I were incredibly proud to have won,” Paul said. “It meant that all our hard work in setting up and establishing our small business with social impact at its core was validated and appreciated by others.

“We had many people who had attended the awards dinner come to congratulate us, which was lovely to receive such a positive response from our peers in the business community.”

The award win has already led Reboot Education to make new connections, with the potential to collaborate with local businesses and community interest groups that have similar social impact aims.

But plans are in place for Reboot Education to go even further, with a short-term ambition of having two full and successful provisions in Suffolk, as well as opening a larger provision in Ipswich, allowing it to extend its tech tribe computer club and introduce an evening youth club.

A new provision in Bury St Edmunds opened in September, and the team is expanding to include two part-time teachers and seven part-time student support assistances in addition to Paul and Viv.

Reboot Education would like to thank Freeport East for its support with a funding grant that has helped it expand the number of places it offers on a daily basis.

They’re also hoping that Reboot Education can become B Corp Certified.

“This would help to emphasise and identify the fact that we are a business with a social impact at its heart,” concluded Paul.

For more information, visit reboot-education.co.uk