Norbury High School for Girls, Thornton Heath

Ofsted's report card from its 19 May 2026 inspection grades Norbury High School for Girls on 7 areas: 4 expected standard and 3 needs attention. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.

Achievement - Expected standard. "Pupils generally achieve in line with national averages in national tests and examinations."

Curriculum and teaching - Expected standard. "The curriculum is well ordered and taught by staff with secure subject knowledge."

Personal development and wellbeing - Expected standard. "Support for pupils' social and emotional development is typically effective."

Post-16 provision - Expected standard. "The sixth form provides a supportive, cohesive and inclusive community."

Attendance and behaviour - Needs attention. "There have been recent improvements in pupils' attendance rates."

Inclusion - Needs attention. "Pupils' needs are identified swiftly and accurately."

Leadership and governance - Needs attention. "Leaders have a broad understanding of the school's strengths and areas for development."

Safeguarding standards were met.

Ofsted's next steps for the school: "Leaders should improve the consistency of teaching to ensure there is systematic checking for understanding in lessons, and the learning of most-able pupils is routinely extended"; "Leaders should ensure that adaptive strategies for teaching pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are understood and used by all teachers"; "Leaders should continue to raise levels of low and persistently low attendance across all pupils groups, including in post-16 provision, by ensuring support is closely targeted to pupils' needs"; "Leaders should improve clarity around leadership roles and structures, so that oversight facilitates improvement".

In its own words: "According to research by the Education Endowment Foundation , completing regular homework linked to classroom work has a positive impact on attainment of secondary age students of more than five months. That means students who regularly complete homework are nearly six months ahead of their peers who do not."

In 2026, pupils at Norbury High School for Girls averaged an Attainment 8 score of 46.5, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 46.4 in Croydon and 47 across England.

46% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 46% in Croydon and 47% in England.

That is in line with 2025, when the score was 46.4.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 0.27: pupils made above average progress compared with pupils nationally who started secondary school at the same level. Progress 8 was not published for 2026.

Disadvantaged pupils averaged an Attainment 8 of 41.4, against 49.3 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 7.9 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 20 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Biology, Physics and Chemistry.

For September 2026 entry, 107 families put Norbury High School for Girls as their first choice and 283 named it as one of their preferences, for 136 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.

The nearest other state secondary schools to Norbury High School for Girls are St Joseph's College (0.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 44); Silburn Reid (0.8 miles); Woodmansterne School (0.9 miles, Good, Attainment 8 46); and Harris Academy Beulah Hill (0.9 miles, Attainment 8 49).

Norbury High School for Girls's 2026 results were higher than 2 of these 3 schools.

Norbury High School for Girls is one of 11 schools run by Wandle Learning Trust, an academy trust.

Of the 220 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 95% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 27% to a further education college, 1% to an apprenticeship and 1% into work.

Of the 56 students who left the sixth form in 2023/24, 73% went on to university or other higher education, 9% to apprenticeships and 5% into work. 3% went to one of the most selective third of universities.

69.8% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

The largest ethnic groups are Asian (48%), Black (23%) and other ethnic groups (12%).

In 2026, 166 pupils (15.3%) received SEN support and 19 (1.8%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is social, emotional and mental health needs.

The nearest railway station is Norbury Rail Station, about 470 metres away (roughly a 6-minute walk).

7 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Norbury Hill (->n), 290 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Norbury High School for Girls stands in is among the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In 2024/25, Norbury High School for Girls issued 103 suspensions, 8.8 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 1 permanent exclusion.

The primary schools closest to Norbury High School for Girls are Kensington Avenue Primary School (0.1 miles), St James the Great RC Primary and Nursery School (0.5 miles), Norbury Manor Primary School (0.6 miles) and Downsview Primary and Nursery School (0.6 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.