City of London Academy Islington
Prebend Street, Islington, London, N1 8PQ
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- CITY OF LONDON ACADEMIES TRUST
- Principal
- Mr Laurence Glees
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Religious ethos
- None
- Sponsor
- City of London Academies Trust
- Constituency
- Islington South and Finsbury
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 805
- Pupils on roll
- 852
- URN
- 135587
- Local authority
- Islington
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 02072268611
About this school
City of London Academy Islington is a secondary academy in London. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 852 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school 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
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 2 April 2025, where inspectors found that standards have been maintained. 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 | 155 | 155 | 157 |
| Attainment 8 score | 47.6 | 45.5 | 40.8 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.14 -0.37 to +0.09 | +0.13 -0.09 to +0.36 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 48% | 37.4% | 37.6% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 68% | 61.9% | 51% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 53% | 38.1% | 21.7% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.4 | 4.0 | 3.5 |
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 City of London Academy Islington has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Islington average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 47.6 | 44.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 45.5 | 46.5 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 40.8 | 45.5 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 10.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 10.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 14.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 897 |
| 2023/24 | 905 |
| 2024/25 | 896 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How City of London Academy Islington compares
City of London Academy Islington ranked 6th of 8 secondary schools in Islington for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 41% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 2% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 40.8 | 14.1% | 70.1% | 852 | — |
| Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School | 52.7 | 8.5% | 63.3% | 888 | 0.7 miles |
| Waterside Academy | 44.6 | 7.8% | 64.4% | 351 | 0.9 miles |
| Central Foundation Boys' School | 55.2 | 6.9% | 46.6% | 1,152 | 0.9 miles |
| City of London Academy Highbury Grove | 45.4 | 10.1% | 60.1% | 892 | 0.9 miles |
| The Bridge Academy | 56.9 | 8% | 59.1% | 1,070 | 1.1 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)
- 70.06%
- English as an additional language
- 38.8%
- Overall absence
- 14.14%
- Persistent absence
- 37.89%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School0.7 miles
Secondary · London
-
Waterside Academy0.9 miles
Secondary · London
-
Central Foundation Boys' School0.9 miles
Secondary · London
-
City of London Academy Highbury Grove0.9 miles
Secondary · London
-
The Bridge Academy1.1 miles
Secondary · London
Other schools in London
City of London Academy Islington ranks 232nd of the 258 ranked secondary schools in London.
- Acland Burghley School Secondary
- Ada Lovelace Church of England High School Secondary
- Addey and Stanhope School Secondary
- AIM Academy North London Secondary
- Alexandra Park School Secondary
- All Saints Catholic College Secondary
- All Saints Catholic High School Secondary
- Ark Acton Academy Secondary
- Ark All Saints Academy Secondary
- Ark Bolingbroke Academy Secondary
- Ark Burlington Danes Academy Secondary
- Ark Elvin Academy Secondary
Common questions
- What year groups does City of London Academy Islington teach?
- City of London Academy Islington teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in London.
- Who is the principal of City of London Academy Islington?
- The principal of City of London Academy Islington is Mr Laurence Glees, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was City of London Academy Islington last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected City of London Academy Islington, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is City of London Academy Islington?
- City of London Academy Islington has 852 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is City of London Academy Islington full?
- City of London Academy Islington has capacity for 805 pupils and 852 on roll (106%), so it is at or above 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 City of London Academy Islington a faith school?
- No. City of London Academy Islington has no designated religious character.
- Is City of London Academy Islington a selective school?
- No. City of London Academy Islington is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs City of London Academy Islington?
- City of London Academy Islington is part of CITY OF LONDON ACADEMIES TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have City of London Academy Islington's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 47.6 in 2022/23 and 40.8 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does City of London Academy Islington rank locally?
- City of London Academy Islington ranked 6th of 8 secondary schools in Islington for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 41% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 2% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is City of London Academy Islington's absence rate?
- City of London Academy Islington's overall absence rate is 14.1% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are City of London Academy Islington's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, City of London Academy Islington'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 1 July 2026.