Highams Park School
34 Handsworth Avenue, Highams Park, London, E4 9PJ
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- HIGHAMS PARK ACADEMY TRUST
- Principal
- Nigel Armsby
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Constituency
- Chingford and Woodford Green
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,700
- Pupils on roll
- 1,592
- URN
- 137558
- Local authority
- Waltham Forest
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 02085274051
About this school
Highams Park School is a secondary academy in London. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,592 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
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Sixth form
- Outstanding
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 235 | 230 | 234 |
| Attainment 8 score | 49.0 | 50.0 | 47.5 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.04 -0.23 to +0.14 | +0.08 -0.11 to +0.27 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 50% | 55.2% | 44.9% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 72% | 73% | 66.7% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 33% | 38.3% | 51.3% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.3 | 4.5 | 4.4 |
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 Highams Park 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 | Waltham Forest average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 49 | 40.5 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 50 | 39.8 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 47.5 | 39.8 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 8.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,537 |
| 2023/24 | 1,534 |
| 2024/25 | 1,547 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Highams Park School compares
Highams Park School ranked 7th of 17 secondary schools in Waltham Forest for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 67% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 16% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 47.5 | 8.1% | 26.2% | 1,592 | — |
| Woodford County High School | 80.1 | 4.9% | 12.4% | 1,237 | 0.7 miles |
| South Chingford Foundation School | 32.8 | 13.4% | 41.7% | 547 | 0.7 miles |
| Trinity Catholic High School | 56.3 | 7% | 14.1% | 1,603 | 1.0 miles |
| Frederick Bremer School | 46.7 | 8.3% | 34.1% | 888 | 1.0 miles |
| Heathcote School & Science College | 46.1 | 7.7% | 31.7% | 1,115 | 1.3 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.
Inspection history
- 22 May 2024
-
Ungraded inspection report8 March 2023
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 26.19%
- English as an additional language
- 38.3%
- Overall absence
- 8.06%
- Persistent absence
- 25.46%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Woodford County High School0.7 miles
Secondary · Woodford Green
-
South Chingford Foundation School0.7 miles
Secondary · London
-
Trinity Catholic High School1.0 miles
Secondary · Woodford Green
-
Frederick Bremer School1.0 miles
Secondary · London
-
Heathcote School & Science College1.3 miles
Secondary · London
Other schools in London
Highams Park School ranks 163rd 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 Highams Park School teach?
- Highams Park School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in London.
- Who is the principal of Highams Park School?
- The principal of Highams Park School is Nigel Armsby, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Highams Park School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Highams Park 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 big is Highams Park School?
- Highams Park School has 1,592 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Highams Park School full?
- Highams Park School has capacity for 1,700 pupils and 1,592 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 Highams Park School a faith school?
- No. Highams Park School has no designated religious character.
- Is Highams Park School a selective school?
- No. Highams Park School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs Highams Park School?
- Highams Park School is part of HIGHAMS PARK ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Highams Park School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 49 in 2022/23 and 47.5 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Highams Park School rank locally?
- Highams Park School ranked 7th of 17 secondary schools in Waltham Forest for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 67% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 16% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Highams Park School's absence rate?
- Highams Park School's overall absence rate is 8.1% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Highams Park School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Highams Park 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 1 July 2026.