The John Fisher School
Peaks Hill, Purley, CR8 3YP
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Boys
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Mr Robert Teague
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Southwark
- Constituency
- Carshalton and Wallington
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,190
- Pupils on roll
- 1,116
- URN
- 103009
- Local authority
- Sutton
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 02086604555
About this school
The John Fisher School is a Roman Catholic boys' voluntary aided secondary school in Purley. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,116 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected The John Fisher School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 21 June 2023, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 187 | 187 | 192 |
| Attainment 8 score | 52.1 | 55.0 | 55.6 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.03 -0.24 to +0.18 | +0.28 +0.07 to +0.49 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 64% | 64.7% | 65.1% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 87% | 86.6% | 85.9% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 29% | 27.8% | 34.9% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.5 | 4.7 | 5.0 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How The John Fisher School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Sutton average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 52.1 | 47.4 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 55 | 46.9 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 55.6 | 47.6 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,163 |
| 2023/24 | 1,154 |
| 2024/25 | 1,134 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How The John Fisher School compares
The John Fisher School ranked 10th of 15 secondary schools in Sutton for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 88% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 33% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 55.6 | 6.4% | 15.9% | 1,116 | — |
| Thomas More Catholic School | 42.1 | 8.7% | 43.1% | 599 | 0.6 miles |
| Wallington High School for Girls | 80.5 | 4.9% | 12.5% | 1,548 | 0.7 miles |
| Wilson's School | 86.9 | 2.8% | 5.8% | 1,327 | 1.0 miles |
| Woodcote High School | 46.1 | 9.8% | 25.9% | 1,250 | 1.1 miles |
| Harris Academy Purley | 46.8 | 7.2% | 43.4% | 1,013 | 1.2 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 15.85%
- English as an additional language
- 23.2%
- Overall absence
- 6.38%
- Persistent absence
- 16.29%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Thomas More Catholic School0.6 miles
Secondary · Purley
-
Wallington High School for Girls0.7 miles
Secondary · Wallington
-
Wilson's School1.0 miles
Secondary · Wallington
-
Woodcote High School1.1 miles
Secondary · Coulsdon
-
Harris Academy Purley1.2 miles
Secondary · South Croydon
Other schools in Purley
- Riddlesdown Collegiate Secondary
- Thomas More Catholic School Secondary
- Purley Nursery School Nursery
- Beaumont Primary School Primary
- Christ Church CofE Primary School (Purley) Primary
- Margaret Roper Catholic Primary School Primary
- Abingdon House School Purley Special schools
- St Nicholas School Special schools
- Laleham Lea School Independent schools
- St David's School Independent schools
Common questions
- What ages does The John Fisher School teach?
- The John Fisher School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Purley.
- Who is the headteacher of The John Fisher School?
- The headteacher of The John Fisher School is Mr Robert Teague, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has The John Fisher School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The John Fisher School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at The John Fisher School?
- The John Fisher School has 1,116 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is The John Fisher School full?
- The John Fisher School has capacity for 1,190 pupils and 1,116 on roll (94%), so it has space against its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is The John Fisher School a faith school?
- Yes. The John Fisher School is designated Roman Catholic, in the Archdiocese of Southwark.
- Is The John Fisher School a selective school?
- No. The John Fisher School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- How have The John Fisher School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 52.1 in 2022/23 and 55.6 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does The John Fisher School compare with other schools in Sutton?
- The John Fisher School ranked 10th of 15 secondary schools in Sutton for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 88% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 33% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is The John Fisher School's absence rate?
- The John Fisher School's overall absence rate is 6.4% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are The John Fisher School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, The John Fisher School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 29 June 2026.