Central Foundation Girls' School
| Type | Secondary / Voluntary aided school |
| Age Range | 11-19 |
| Religion | Unknown |
| Address | Bow Road London E3 2AE |
| Phone | 02089811131 |
| Reference Number | 100975 |
Central Foundation Girls' School is a large, inclusive girls' secondary school in an area of well-above-average deprivation, with a high proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals. Inspectors found safeguarding standards are met and that pupils feel safe. The school performs strongly in most areas: achievement, attendance and behaviour, inclusion, leadership and governance, and personal development are all strong. Disadvantaged pupils in particular achieve exceptionally well, with outcomes well above national averages. Curriculum and teaching, and post-16 provision, are currently at the expected standard rather than strong. Teaching is generally effective and the curriculum is ambitious and logically sequenced, but there is variability across subjects and key stages in how well teachers check pupils' understanding before moving on. In the sixth form, leaders have begun a two-year improvement strategy after historically disappointing performance; level 3 applied courses are performing significantly above national averages, but the impact is not yet consistent across all post-16 provision, and A-level value added is below national. The school's context includes a headteacher who took up post after the previous inspection. Next steps focus on embedding consistent checking of pupils' understanding across all subjects and key stages, and fully implementing and monitoring the remainder of the post-16 strategy so achievement is consistent. The report also notes the school is welcoming, pupils enjoy learning, and extra-curricular and careers provision is broad.
General Makeup
| Number of pupils | 1526 |
| Percentage of students eligible for free school meals | 45.6% |
| Percentage of students where English is not their first language | 41.8% |
Class Sizes
| Average size of one teacher classes | 21.4 |
Year Groups
| Year | Boys | Girls | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Unknown | 238 | 238 |
| 8 | Unknown | 239 | 239 |
| 9 | Unknown | 239 | 239 |
| 10 | Unknown | 239 | 239 |
| 11 | Unknown | 233 | 233 |
| 12 | Unknown | 165 | 165 |
| 13 | Unknown | 173 | 173 |
Ethnicities
| Ethnicity | Percentage |
|---|---|
| African | 5.2% |
| Asian, Other | 3.9% |
| Mixed, Other | 2.2% |
| White, British | 1.7% |
| Pakistani | 1.3% |
| White & Asian | 1.2% |
| White, Other | 1.1% |
| Unclassified | 0.8% |
| White & Black (Caribbean) | 0.5% |
| Indian | 0.5% |
| Chinese | 0.3% |
| White & Black (African) | 0.3% |
| Caribbean | 0.3% |
| Overall Ofsted Rating | Expected standard |
| > Leadership & Governance | Strong standard |
| > Personal Development & Wellbeing | Strong standard |
| > Achievement | Strong standard |
| > Attendance & Behaviour | Strong standard |
| > Curriculum & Teaching | Expected standard |
| > Inclusion | Strong standard |
| > Post-16 Provision | Expected standard |
| Last Report Date | 06 Jan 2026 |
| Date | Report |
|---|---|
| 06 Jan 2026 | School inspection |
| 03 Nov 2021 | School inspection |
| 18 Oct 2016 | Full inspection |
| 23 Nov 2011 | Full inspection |
| 29 Jun 2010 | Curriculum and development visit |
| 25 Feb 2009 | Full inspection |
| 22 Mar 2006 | Full inspection |
| 25 Sep 2000 | Full inspection |
Strengths
- Pupils' progress through the curriculum is excellent, with strong outcomes by the end of Year 11.
- Disadvantaged pupils achieve significantly above national averages in attainment and progress.
- Attendance is excellent and consistently above national averages for all groups.
- Pupils behave extremely well, creating a calm and orderly learning environment.
- Suspensions are very low, with no permanent exclusions since 2012.
- SEND identification and support are robust, and staff adapt teaching well to meet pupils' needs.
- Leaders know the school well, use data effectively, and implement impactful improvement strategies.
- Professional development is high quality and staff feel well supported with workload and wellbeing.
- Governors fulfil their statutory duties and have detailed knowledge of the school.
- The personal development programme is comprehensive, age-appropriate, and responsive to local needs.
- A wide range of free or funded extra-curricular activities, including Central+ and Duke of Edinburgh, is available.
- Careers education runs from Year 7 to Year 13 and prepares pupils well for next steps.
- The sixth form is inclusive, with level 3 applied courses showing attainment and progress significantly above national averages.
- Pupils feel safe, enjoy school, and have positive relationships with staff.
- Safeguarding standards are met, with an open culture of safeguarding.
- Pupils' destinations after key stage 4 are above national averages.
Areas for Improvement
- Teaching is not consistently effective across all subjects and key stages.
- Some teachers do not check pupils' understanding securely before moving on.
- The post-16 improvement strategy has not yet delivered consistent achievement across all provision.
- A-level value added is below national averages.
- Leaders need to embed the strategy for checking pupils' understanding consistently across all subjects and key stages.
- Leaders need to implement and monitor the remainder of the post-16 strategy so achievement is consistent across all subjects.
Attainment 8 Score
Attaimenment 8 is a measure of a pupil's average grade across a set of 8 subjects. The 8 subjects which make up Attainment 8 are:
- English
- Maths
- 3 subjects from qualifications that count towards the English Baccalaureate (EBacc), like sciences, language and history
- 3 more GCSE qualifications (including EBacc subjects) or technical awards from a list approved by the Department for Education
Each grade a pupil gets is assigned a point score from 9 (the highest) to 1 (the lowest). These scores are added up, with English and maths counted twice.
| School Score | Percentile (local) | Percentile (nationwide) |
|---|---|---|
| 54.3 |
GCSE Results
| Metric | School Score | Percentile (local) | Percentile (nationwide) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 54% | ||
| 5 or more GCSEs at grade 9-4 (or A-C) | 72.6% |
Attainment 8 Score
Attaimenment 8 is a measure of a pupil's average grade across a set of 8 subjects. The 8 subjects which make up Attainment 8 are:
Sample
UnlockGCSE Results
Sample
UnlockPoints
| Points | Percentile (local) | Percentile (nationwide) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Points | 32.59 | ||
| Average Points (best 3) | 32.74 |
Grades
| School | Local | Nationwide | |
| Average Grade | C+ | C+ | C+ |
| Average Grade (best 3) | C+ | C+ | C+ |
| Percentage | Percentile (local) | Percentile (nationwide) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students getting AAB or better | 6.3% |
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| Number of Applications | Number of Offers | |
| First Preference | ||
| Second Preference | 118 | 24 |
| Third Preference | 67 | 9 |
| From another Local Authority | 30 | 11 |
Previous Years
Sample
UnlockDestinations after GCSE's
| Staying in Education | |
| > Further Education | |
| > School Sixth Form | |
| > Sixth Form College | |
| > Other Education | |
| Apprenticeships | |
| Employment | |
| Not in education or employment | |
| Unknown |
| Name | Distance |
|
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0.05 miles |
|
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|
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0.4 miles |
|
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0.43 miles |
|
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0.43 miles |
|
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|
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|
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0.09 miles |
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0.77 miles |
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