Hillcrest, London
Hillcrest is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16 in London.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Hillcrest in detail
Getting a place at Hillcrest
Across Croydon, 71% of families were offered their first-choice secondary school for 2026 entry, and 95% were offered one of the schools they named.
In 2026, families in Croydon lodged 55 appeals against secondary school offers; 39 reached a hearing and 2 succeeded (5.1% of those heard).
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to Hillcrest are The Norwood School (0.4 miles, Good, Attainment 8 46.9); Harris Academy Beulah Hill (0.5 miles, Attainment 8 49); St Joseph's College (0.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 44); and Kingsdale Foundation School (0.8 miles, Outstanding, Attainment 8 56.9).
The Norwood SchoolHarris Academy Beulah HillSt Joseph's CollegeKingsdale Foundation School
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Gipsy Hill Station, about 580 metres away (roughly a 7-minute walk).
12 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Hermitage Road, 80 metres away.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to Hillcrest are Rockmount Primary School (0.1 miles), St Joseph's RC Infant School (0.4 miles), St Joseph's RC Junior School (0.4 miles) and Paxton Primary School (0.4 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
Rockmount Primary SchoolSt Joseph's RC Infant SchoolSt Joseph's RC Junior SchoolPaxton Primary School
Sources: DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport)
Location
Our estimate from how close the nearest similar schools are and how oversubscribed the council's schools are. It is not a published boundary.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
No inspection data available
At a Glance
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby secondary schools
Keep up with Hillcrest
Getting There
Train Stations
Bus Stops
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 46
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 10
- Children hurt
- 8
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 46 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 10 serious and 36 slight.
8 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on foot, 2 on a bicycle and 4 in a vehicle or otherwise.
9 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Croydon is 54.5 (the median across 156 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Capacity & Demand
Area Demand Pressure - London
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for London
Across Croydon council
Places available
4,025
Applications
4,184
Got 1st preference
71.2%
Got preferred school
95.3%
All secondary applications across Croydon council (2026/27), not just this school.
Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
Hillcrest
Showing 10 of 15 linked schools
Questions parents ask about Hillcrest
What is the catchment area for Hillcrest?
No fixed boundary. When Hillcrest is oversubscribed, Croydon allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
How do I apply to Hillcrest?
Apply through Croydon's coordinated admissions process, naming Hillcrest on your application. The national closing date in England is 31 October for secondary places and 15 January for primary places, in the year before your child starts.
How many road collisions happen near Hillcrest?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 46 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 10 serious and 36 slight. 8 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on foot, 2 on a bicycle and 4 in a vehicle or otherwise. 9 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Croydon is 54.5 (the median across 156 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Hillcrest?
Hillcrest is at 101 Central Hill, Upper Norwood, London, SE19 1BY.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)