SCHOOL PROFILE

Coombe Wood School

Secondary Free schools URN 145875
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 1,100 Published school capacity
Capacity used 105.6% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 11 – 18 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest graded inspection

17 January 2023
Latest published outcome Good
OEIF
Quality of education Good
Behaviour & attitudes Good
Personal development Good
Leadership & management Good
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Free schools
Phase Secondary
Gender Mixed
Religious character —
Local authority Croydon
Trust GREENSHAW LEARNING TRUST
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 1,162 1,162 full-time · 0 part-time
Female pupils 477 41.0% of pupils
Male pupils 685 59.0% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

29.0%
4.2 pts above England
School 29.0%
Croydon 27.2%
London 26.3%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

25.4%
5.1 pts above England
School 25.4%
Croydon 29.6%
London 39.2%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

0.3%
0.7 pts below England
School 0.3%
Croydon 0.4%
London 0.5%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

White British
22.9%
266
Any other Mixed background
13.0%
151
Any other White background
11.1%
129
African
10.2%
119
Indian
9.7%
113
Caribbean
7.5%
87
Council, regional and national comparisons are pupil-weighted using published school census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS

Special educational needs

Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.

2025/26
Pupils with SEN 13.9% 161 of 1,162 pupils
7.0 pts below England England: 20.8%
School 13.9%
Croydon 22.1%
London 19.8%
England 20.8%
SEN support 10.5% 122 pupils
England 14.8% 4.3 pts below
EHC plans 3.4% 39 pupils
England 6.0% 2.7 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Social, emotional & mental health 52
Speech, language & communication 32
Autistic spectrum disorder 26
Specific learning difficulty 26
Moderate learning difficulty 18
Hearing impairment 2

SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Key stage 4 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
ATTAINMENT 8

Average attainment score

52.6 13.4 pts above England
School 52.6
Croydon 36.3
London 42.1
England 39.2
English & maths grade 5+ 55.4% England 36.0% 19.4 pts above England
English & maths grade 4+ 74.0% England 51.4% 22.6 pts above England
EBacc entry 87.6% England 30.6% 57.0 pts above England
EBacc average point score 4.94 England 3.41
Progress 8 Not available for 2024/25

Latest published: 0.38 · 2023/24

Comparisons are averages of published school-level results for open schools. They are not pupil-weighted official local authority attainment rates.

ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE

Attendance profile

Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.

2024/25
ABSENCE RATE

Overall absence

6.42%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

0.20 pts higher than England
School 6.42%
Croydon 6.77%
London 6.38%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

17.44%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

1.62 pts higher than England
School 17.44%
Croydon 19.05%
London 17.60%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

1.08%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

0.73 pts lower than England
School 1.08%
Croydon 2.11%
London 1.67%
England 1.80%
Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages rather than pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

School context

Comparison with open secondary schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

105.6% 13.3 pts above England
Coombe Wood School
105.6%
Croydon
79.6%
London
91.3%
England
92.3%
Benchmarks use open schools in the same phase. Capacity utilisation is calculated from published pupil and capacity figures.
Sources: Department for Education · Get Information about Schools · Ofsted monthly management information