City of London Academy, Shoreditch Park

Inspection of City of London Academy, Shoreditch Park Hyde Road, London N1 5JU

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Inspection dates: 22 and 23 January 2025

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The quality of education Outstanding Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Outstanding Sixth-form provision Outstanding Previous inspection grade Good

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The principal of this school is Holly Arles. This school is part of City of London Academies Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer (CEO), Mark Emmerson, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Catherine McGuinness. 22 and 23 January 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are eager to learn and explore new ideas, displaying remarkable maturity. Teachers actively model and promote positive communication skills such as making eye contact, smiling and voice projection.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils rise to the school’s exceptionally high academic and social standards, striving to be ‘loud and proud’ when offering ideas in lessons. They engage actively in lessons and are motivated by the postcards they receive, recognising their active participation and effort.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are polite and thoughtful in their interactions with one another. For example, they benefit from the school’s ‘warm/strict’ ethos and, therefore, can make informed choices to behave well because they know that this benefits all members of the school. It results in a place where pupils feel safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school passionately prioritises pupils’ personal development, welfare and well-being. The personal development curriculum is creative and engaging, helping pupils grow into responsible and respectful world citizens effectively. This is achieved through a diverse range of high-quality clubs, leadership roles and educational trips. The school nurtures pupils’ unique talents and interests through activities such as debating, music, sports, chess and dance.

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What is it like to attend this school?

In the sixth form, students participate in a range of enriching experiences, including charitable works and work experience. They also receive comprehensive careers guidance and support to make informed decisions about their futures.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The school has designed an exceptionally ambitious and forward-thinking curriculum that matches, and in some cases exceeds, the scope of what is expected nationally. The curriculum not only inspires academic growth but also nurtures pupils’ cultural capital through enriching opportunities. Pupils benefit from ‘Subject Enrichment Weeks’, which offer valuable opportunities to explore connections between the subjects they study and gain a deeper understanding of potential career paths. Central to the school’s ethos is a commitment to building disadvantaged pupils’ resilience, enabling them to thrive and achieve their full potential.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

As pupils move through their educational journey, they develop remarkable expertise in their chosen subjects, demonstrated by the consistently outstanding work they produce. The curriculum equips pupils with the skills and knowledge they need for success in their next stages of education, employment or training. Examination results are exceptionally strong, with disadvantaged pupils achieving outcomes that exceed those of their peers nationally.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The curriculum is implemented across the school with a high degree of consistency. Staff are true experts in their fields, continuously enhancing their teaching skills through the high-quality training provided by the school. This dedication to professional growth 22 and 23 January 2025

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ensures that teaching remains dynamic, effective and engaging. Despite the school’s impressive achievements, leaders remain committed to improvement, using data-driven evaluations to refine the curriculum and enrichment opportunities further.

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The school quickly and accurately identifies the additional needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and demonstrates exemplary support for them. Most of the support provided is delivered by subject teachers through the core curriculum. Teachers have been very well trained to meet the needs of pupils in their lessons. They are provided with user-friendly, clear and focused information on pupils’ needs to inform their planning and practice further. This ensures that pupils with SEND excel and flourish during their time at the school.

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Students in the sixth form display exceptionally high standards of work in their subjects. In Spanish lessons, they engage in sophisticated, fluent conversations. While in mathematics, they craft well-structured responses to complex problems using subject- specific vocabulary. Similarly, their art and design projects exhibit a high level of creativity and technical expertise. Thanks to the school’s robust curriculum and outstanding careers guidance, students progress to prestigious universities, including international Ivy League institutions, and ambitious career pathways.

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The school places a strong emphasis on reading. Pupils read frequently, which enhances their fluency and accuracy. Those who require additional help with reading receive effective support to catch up swiftly. The school actively encourages reading for pleasure. Key stage 3 pupils benefit from dedicated reading lessons, and the well-stocked library is a valuable resource pupils make good use of. This strong foundation empowers pupils to engage fully with the wider curriculum.

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Beyond academics, the school offers a vast range of enrichment and leadership roles designed to foster essential attributes like resilience, leadership and service. The school is deeply committed to ensuring that all pupils, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds, have access to these enriching experiences. Leaders carefully monitor participation and use this information to enhance their offerings continually. The school’s diversity calendar ensures that a wide range of opportunities are provided to help pupils understand, appreciate and celebrate things that make us similar and yet different: Black History Month, Asian History Month, Pride Month: lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT).

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The school benefits from strong and expert governance. The trust and those responsible for governance have a deep understanding of the school’s strengths. They provide invaluable support and constructive challenge to leaders, ensuring the school’s continued success and improvement.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 22 and 23 January 2025

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How can I feed back my views?

find out what other parents and carers think. We use information from Ofsted Parent View when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ is used to mean pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND); pupils who meet the definition of children in need of help and protection ; pupils receiving statutory local authority support from a social worker; and pupils who otherwise meet the criteria used for deciding the school’s pupil premium funding (this includes pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 22 and 23 January 2025

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form

Dates of previous inspection 26 and 27 November 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this school

 The school uses one registered alternative provision.  The school has increased its pupils on roll from Years 7 to 9 to Years 7 to 13.  The school has moved to a new permanent building.  The school meets the requirements of the provider access legislation, which requires schools to provide pupils in Years 8 to 13 with information and engagement about approved technical education qualifications and apprenticeships.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 22 and 23 January 2025

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 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  During the inspection, inspectors met with the headteacher and other senior leaders. Inspectors met with leaders with responsibility for pupils with SEND, behaviour and attendance, reading, pupils’ wider development, careers and the sixth form.  Inspectors met with representatives from the trust.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, mathematics, art and design, drama and geography. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.

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 Inspectors also discussed the curriculum in some other subjects.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors considered the respective responses to Ofsted’s online surveys for parents and staff.

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Inspection team

Lisa Smith, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Lascelles Haughton His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Katerina Christodoulou Ofsted Inspector 22 and 23 January 2025

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achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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