Priory School, London
Data last updated 11 Sept 2026
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Overall
Ofsted Insights
What This School Does Well
Priory School excels at developing students' social skills and confidence through respectful, caring teaching. Students with autism and behavioural difficulties receive sensitive, skilled support that helps them make continuous progress. The sixth form provides excellent preparation for adult life, with many students gaining the independence skills needed for supported living.
Key Strengths
- All groups of students, including those with autism and behavioural difficulties, make good progress
- Teaching is mostly good with strong expressive arts provision including art, dance and music
- Students develop excellent social and communication skills, good manners and self-confidence
- Sixth form students gain valuable life skills and work experience to prepare them for independence
- Leadership rigorously checks teaching quality and has led to improved student enjoyment of learning
Areas for Improvement
- Not enough teaching is yet outstanding - more consistency needed across lessons
- Some students with autism don't fully participate in learning due to insufficient detailed planning
- Support staff sometimes don't help students become independent enough in their learning
- Teachers don't always plan enough opportunities to teach literacy and numeracy across all subjects
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective, with staff trained in positive behaviour support and detailed interventions in place to help students with challenging behaviour make safe improvements.
Extracurricular Activities
Art, dance, music activities, visiting poet sessions, community performance venues, cooking, shopping, work experience programmes
Priory School is a good special school for students aged 11-19 with severe learning difficulties, many with complex needs including autism. The new headteacher and deputy headteacher have driven continuous improvement in teaching quality and student progress since the last inspection.
At a Glance
51.2%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
Yes
Sixth Form
SpLD - Specific Learning Difficulty, ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder, MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty, SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty
SEN Provision
No
Special Measures
Class Sizes
0.0
Avg class size
0
Total classes
2024/25 academic year
Getting There
Train Stations
Bus Stops
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
101%
Over capacity
140 pupils
139 capacity
1 places over capacity
Area Demand Pressure - London
Based on MHCLG housing supply data for London
Admissions Demand - Croydon
Places available
4,128
Applications
4,421
Got 1st preference
71.0%
Got preferred school
95.5%
Secondary admissions across Croydon (2025/26)
Inspection History(108)
House Prices
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SEN Provision
How many pupils have special educational needs, what types of support the school provides, and how it compares to similar schools.
Pupil Demographics
The school's pupil mix - ethnicity breakdown, free school meals eligibility, and English as an additional language. Useful context when evaluating school fit.
Teachers & Staff
Teacher qualification rates, pupil-to-teacher ratio, staff turnover, and salary data. Shows how well-resourced and stable the school's workforce is.
Pupil Absence2024/25
8.91035%
Overall absence
28.39506%
Persistent absence
81
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
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Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
Priory School
Rockmount Primary School
St Joseph's RC Junior School
St Joseph's RC Infant School
Downsview Primary and Nursery School
Kingswood Primary School
St Luke's Church of England Primary School
Paxton Primary School
All Saints CofE Primary School
Crown Lane Primary School
David Livingstone Academy
Showing 10 of 15 linked schools
Nearby Schools
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