Sydenham SchoolForest Hill School

Inspection, results, pupils and attendance side by side in London.

Summary of the comparison

Sydenham School and Forest Hill School are secondary schools in London.

  • Sydenham School scores 63 out of 100 (grade C, average) and Forest Hill School scores 64 out of 100 (grade C, average). Forest Hill School is ahead on our composite score.

  • Sydenham School was judged strong and Forest Hill School was judged Good.

  • On GCSE Attainment 8, the latest published figures are 50.8 for Sydenham School and 52.3 for Forest Hill School.

  • GCSE Attainment 8 has fallen at Sydenham School (54.6 in 2021-22, 50.8 in 2024-25) and has held broadly level at Forest Hill School (51.6 in 2021-22, 52.3 in 2024-25).

Side-by-side comparison

Sydenham School versus Forest Hill School compared on inspection, results, pupils and attendance.
Measure LondonSydenham SchoolLondonForest Hill SchoolEngland average
Overview
Our scoreC63/100C64/100Stronger figure
Local ranking4th of 14 in Lewisham 3rd of 14 in Lewisham Stronger figure
InspectionOfsted: StrongStronger figureOfsted: Good
School typeCommunity school Community school
PhaseSecondary Secondary
Age range11-18 11-18
GenderGirls Boys
Pupils on roll1,507 1,072
Capacity1,580 1,535
LocationLondon, SE26 4RD London, SE23 2XN
GCSE results
Attainment 850.8 52.3 Stronger figure46.0
Grade 5+ in English & maths48.6% 58.7% Stronger figure45.4%
Grade 4+ in English & maths72.5% 73.2% Stronger figure64.8%
Entering EBacc67.9% Stronger figure39.1% 40.5%
EBacc average point score4.64 4.81 Stronger figure4.09
Cohort218 179
A-level results
A-level entries116 71
A-level average points39.3 Stronger figure34.1 35.0
A-level average gradeB C+
Best 3 A-levels points39.7 Stronger figure34.4 35.8
AAB+ incl. facilitating subjects19.3% Stronger figure8.8% 17.5%
Pupils
Pupils in the census1,507 1,072
Free school meals (ever 6)29.0% 30.7%
English as an additional language18.9% 21.7%
SEN support13.9% 24.4%
SEN with an EHC plan1.7% 2.5%
Attendance
Overall absence8.2% 7.0% Stronger figure6.2%
Persistent absence26.4% 18.9% Stronger figure15.8%

marks the stronger figure on measures with a clear direction. Rows describing a school's intake, such as free school meals, English as an additional language and SEN, carry no marker: they describe who a school serves, not how well it serves them.

Historical trends

Each solid line is one school; the dashed line is the national average.

GCSE Attainment 8

GCSE Progress 8

A-level average points

Overall absence

Free school meal eligibility (ever 6)

Pupils on roll

Ethnicity over time

One panel per school: the largest groups across this comparison, one colour per group, on a shared scale.

Sydenham School

Forest Hill School

Full profiles: Sydenham School · Forest Hill School