The Link School, Croydon
Data last updated 11 Sept 2026
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 1 year agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Sixth Form
Ofsted Insights
What This School Does Well
The Link School excels at helping pupils who have struggled in education before. Staff build strong relationships with each pupil, understand their individual needs, and use this knowledge to create personalised learning programs that boost confidence and independence. The school's outstanding behaviour support and personal development opportunities mean pupils develop resilience, self-esteem and important life skills.
Key Strengths
- Outstanding behaviour and attitudes - pupils feel safe and incidents reduce significantly over time
- Outstanding personal development through clubs, competitions, and leadership roles including school council and safeguarding champions
- Excellent support for re-engagement with education - staff work with families to help pupils who have had negative prior experiences settle into school life
- Strong focus on reading and phonics with regular checks to identify and support pupils falling behind
- Well-designed ambitious curriculum in both main school and sixth form that personalises learning to individual pupil needs
Areas for Improvement
- Limited accreditation pathways for older pupils and sixth form students, which reduces the gains some of the oldest pupils make
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective and the school has created an open, positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
Choir, sports, yoga, theatrical performances, sporting competitions, Dungeons and Dragons club, museum and gallery visits, community shop visits, places of worship visits, animal centre visits, overnight stays at activity centres, car washing enterprise, meal preparation enterprise, school council, eco reps, safeguarding champions
The Link School is a special school for pupils aged 4-19 with a range of educational needs. The school prioritises pupils' well-being and has created a supportive environment where many pupils' resilience and engagement with education improves over time.
At a Glance
43.2%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
Yes
Sixth Form
SLCN - Speech, language and Communication, ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder
SEN Provision
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
41 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2025/26KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has remained stable at around 0%. Maths has remained stable at around 0%. Writing has remained stable at around 0%.
Class Sizes
0.0
Avg class size
0
Total classes
2024/25 academic year
Getting There
Train Stations
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
113%
Over capacity
167 pupils
148 capacity
19 places over capacity
Area Demand Pressure - Croydon
Based on MHCLG housing supply data for Croydon
Admissions Demand - Sutton
Places available
3,511
Applications
2,760
Got 1st preference
72.0%
Got preferred school
96.9%
Secondary admissions across Sutton (2025/26)
Inspection History(3)
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
13.83371%
Overall absence
34.72222%
Persistent absence
144
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Reviews
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Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
The Link School
High View Primary School
Beddington Park Academy
Harris Primary Academy Purley Way
Beddington Infants' School
Holy Trinity CofE Junior School
Bandon Hill Primary School
St Elphege's RC Junior School
St Elphege's RC Infants' School
The Minster Junior School
The Minster Nursery and Infants Church of England Academy
Showing 10 of 15 linked schools
Nearby Schools
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