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City of London Academy (Southwark)

Secondary · London · SE1 5LA

Data updated

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Strong standard

Report-card inspection (current system, from November 2025)

The headline grade shown is the Achievement area of the school's report card.

Safeguarding: MetCurriculum & teaching: Strong standardAchievement: Strong standardAttendance & behaviour: Strong standardPersonal development: Expected standardInclusion: Strong standardLeadership & governance: Strong standardEarly years: Not applicablePost-16: Strong standard

Inspected 3 February 2026 · report published 28 May 2026

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

1,589 pupils · 132% of 1,200 capacity (over capacity) (January 2026 census)

School type
Academy sponsor led
Age range
11–19
Gender
Mixed
Admissions
Non-selective
Free school meals
52.5% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
20.2% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
15.6% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
2% of pupils (2024/2025)
Sixth form
Yes
Website
http://www.cityacademy.co.uk/
URN
134222

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 223 families named it first for 240 Year 7 places, 0.93 first choices per place. At its report-card inspection on 3 February 2026, under the system Ofsted introduced in November 2025, the Achievement area was judged Strong standard. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 8.1% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Year 7 entry, September 2026

0.93 first-choice applications per place

240 places offered · 223 first-choice applications · roughly balanced

First-choice applications per place, by entry year

19/20
20/21
21/22
22/23
23/24
24/25
25/26
26/27

Source: DfE applications and offers on national offer day · how demand is measured

GCSE results (2024/2025)

230 pupils at the end of key stage 4 in 2024/2025

Attainment 8 score
52.9
England 46.1
Grade 4 or above in English & maths GCSEs
78.3%
England 64.8%
Grade 5 or above in English & maths GCSEs
57.8%
England 45.4%
EBacc average point score
4.9
England 4.1

Progress 8 is suspended nationally for 2024/25 and 2025/26. These cohorts sat no key stage 2 tests (COVID), so there is no baseline to measure progress from.

A-level results (2024/2025)

A-level points per entry (England: 35 ≈ B-) B-
37.6
England 35

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means

Schools with a similar intake

Attainment 8, 2024/2025

This school52.9
Median of its 12 closest peers41.9
Southwark average51.4
England46.1

On attainment 8, this school is ahead of the schools that teach a comparable intake.

They are matched on intake, not location, so most are not local: see nearby schools for those you could apply to.

SchoolOfstedAttainment 8
Wright Robinson CollegeManchester · 162 miles awayStrong standard49.1
Walbottle AcademyNewcastle-upon-Tyne · 252 miles awayGood46.6
St Matthew's RC High SchoolManchester · 166 miles awayGood37.8
Ormiston SWB AcademyBilston · 113 miles awayExpected standard42
Our Lady and St Chad Catholic AcademyWolverhampton · 116 miles awayGood40.4
Derby Cathedral SchoolDerby · 116 miles awayGood41.5
Co-op Academy FailsworthManchester · 165 miles awayGood43
Archbishop Ilsley Catholic SchoolBirmingham · 100 miles awayNeeds attention41.7
King Edward VI Sheldon Heath AcademyBirmingham · 99 miles awayGood47.4
Co-op Academy Stoke-On-TrentStoke-on-Trent · 141 miles awayGood42.7
The Phoenix CollegiateWest Bromwich · 110 miles awayGood39.8
Stantonbury SchoolMilton Keynes · 50 miles awayUrgent improvement32.8

It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

Black African 38% (Southwark 28%, England 5%) · White British 9% (Southwark 18%, England 59%) · Any other Mixed background 8% (Southwark 6%, England 3%) · Black Caribbean 7% (Southwark 7%, England 1%) · Any other ethnic group 6% (Southwark 7%, England 3%) · Any other Black background 6% (Southwark 5%, England 1%) · Any other White background 6% (Southwark 10%, England 7%) · Any other Asian background 5% (Southwark 3%, England 3%) · Not recorded 4% (Southwark 2%, England 2%) · Mixed White and Black Caribbean 3% (Southwark 3%, England 2%) · Asian Bangladeshi 2% (Southwark 2%, England 2%) · Mixed White and Black African 2% (Southwark 2%, England 1%) · Asian Chinese 2% (Southwark 1%, England 1%) · Mixed White and Asian 1% (Southwark 2%, England 2%) · other groups together 1%

Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures

Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)

Sessions missed (overall absence)
8.1%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
23.2%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

15.55 suspensions per 100 pupils and 1 permanent exclusion · England, secondary schools: 21.24 suspensions and 0.23 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Southwark: 11.27 suspensions and 0.07 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils

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Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms, and DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions, school-level file · how absence is measured · how to read exclusions

Staffing

Pupils per qualified teacher
17
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

78% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 5% moved to another state school · 17% left the state-funded sector

Vacancies (November 2025)

0% of teaching posts vacant, 1.07% filled temporarily · England, secondary academies: 0.45% vacant, 0.33% temporary

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

80.2% of teachers took sickness absence, 8.3 days each on average · England, all state-funded schools: 61.8%, 8.1 days

Teacher pay (November 2025)

Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £62,471; 14.9% on the leadership pay range · England, secondary schools: £53,766, 11.3%

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Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted

Spending per pupil (2024-25)

This school£10,533
Typical secondary school£7,846

Where the money went (2024-25)

Share of spending, with the median for secondary schools in brackets: Staff 76% (77%) · premises 6% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 9% (6%) · supplies and services 8% (11%) · educational supplies 5% (6%) · bought-in professional services 2% (1%) · catering 5% (3%)

Reserves (2024-25)

Revenue reserve £3,531,000; in-year balance +£270,000

Spending and reserves, last three years Premium

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Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: academy finance return, 2024-25, DfE · how spending is compared

Where pupils go after GCSEs

In sustained education, work or training
91%
Continuing in education
88%
Apprenticeship
2%
Employment
1%

Where students go after sixth form

To university / higher education
65%
Apprenticeship
6%
Employment
15%
Any sustained destination
89%

Destinations measured the year after leaving, DfE destination measures in the 2024/2025 performance tables.

Inspection history since 2015

Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems

The area around the school

Child poverty (IDACI)
3/10more deprived than most of England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
4/10more deprived than most of England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher49.3%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications14.7%18.1%
In managerial or professional work37.8%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways20.3%18.1%
Residents in very good health54.4%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier29.9%62.3%
Social housing34.6%17.1%
Privately rented35.4%20.5%
Detached houses1.9%22.9%
Flats74.2%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms3.7%21.1%
Households with no car or van59.6%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01004038 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£425,000560 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£329,500–£591,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Semi-detached (7)£655,000
Terraced (103)£690,000
Flat (450)£389,000

Homes around this school are dearer than three quarters of school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.

Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Roads around the school

Child pedestrian casualties
5an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
27an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
148an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
27an urban school averages 6.1

A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted

Nearby schools