School Chooser

Oak Lodge School

Special · ages 10-19MixedCouncil96 pupilsSixth formLondonWandsworth
School Chooser ScoreNot scoredWe don't score this type of school.
Strong pass in English and maths0%England 46%
Attendance90.5%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families69%Far more than most schools
Places4 spare96 pupils, 100 places
Pupils per teacher4.0School workforce census
Pupils on roll96Census January 2026

Oak Lodge School is a council special school in London for boys and girls aged 10 to 19. It has 96 pupils and room for 100. About 69 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England.

101 Nightingale Lane, Balham, London, SW12 8NA020 8673 3453oaklodge.wandsworth.sch.ukMrs Caroline Rowlandson executive headteacherAll details

Ofsted

Ofsted hasn't published an inspection for this school yet.

Results

GCSE results, summer 2025

12 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England.

Average GCSE score0.7
England 46.8
Official name: Attainment 8
Strong pass in English and maths0%
England 46%
Official name: Grade 5+ in English and maths
Standard pass in English and maths0%
England 66%
Official name: Grade 4+ in English and maths
Progress from age 11-1.39In each subject, pupils here finished about a grade behind children across England who started secondary school at the same level. (From 2023/24, the latest year there is. The government didn't work it out for the 2025 year group.)Official name: Progress 8
Trend
Average GCSE score
2018 to 2025
2018: 3.43.420182019: 1.71.720192022: 2.02.020222023: 4.14.120232024: 2.92.920242025: 0.70.72025
Since 2018: -2.7
All GCSE measures, year by year
Measure202520242023202220192018WandsworthEngland
Pupils at the end of Year 111210119157
Average GCSE scoreAttainment 80.72.94.12.01.73.452.846.8
Progress from age 11Progress 8-1.39-1.07-1.73-1.85-1.61
Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths0%0%0%0%0%0%57%46%
Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths0%0%0%0%0%0%76%66%
Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score0.000.000.080.000.000.004.934.15
Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry0%0%0%0%0%0%61%41%
Average GCSE score: low-income pupilsAttainment 8, disadvantaged3.3
Average GCSE score: other pupilsAttainment 8, non-disadvantaged0.6
Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers2.95.62.61.63.3

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

1 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England. With a year group this small, a couple of children can move the percentages a long way.

Reached the expected level at 11Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected levelOfficial name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading scoreOfficial name: Reading average scaled score
Maths scoreOfficial name: Maths average scaled score
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure20252018WandsworthEngland
Pupils tested11

There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Wandsworth council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.

Pupils on roll96Census January 2026
Places10096% full
Pupils from low-income families64%69% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English60%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support1%1 pupil with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan99%95 pupils with a plan
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)69%£39,600 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls52 / 44
White British pupils23%

Specialist SEND provision. A special school for pupils with hearing impairment, speech, language and communication.

To get a place in the unit or resourced provision, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school. Other schools in Wandsworth with hearing impairment provision.

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Hearing impairment (89), language and communications needs (5), emotional and mental health (1), Vision impairment (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll9691102908776
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals64%66%67%56%51%46%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language60%58%58%50%48%54%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support0%4%3%0%0%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans100%96%97%100%100%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 90.5% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance90.5%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school42.6%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils12.12024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.8%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence9.5%10.3%12.5%13.6%10.0%9.4%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence7.7%7.5%10.5%12.6%6.3%8.6%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.8%2.9%2.1%1.0%3.6%0.8%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence42.6%39.2%50.0%34.9%38.5%40.4%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate12.19.815.63.52.6
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

What pupils do next

After GCSEs

Where the 11 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.

Still in education, work or training100%and stayed there for at least six months

Among pupils from low-income families it was 100%, compared with – for everyone else.

Earlier years
Destination2022/23 leavers2021/22 leavers2020/21 leavers2019/20 leavers
Still in education, work or training100%100%87%100%
Education100%100%87%100%
Apprenticeship0%0%0%0%
Work0%0%0%0%
Not in education, work or training0%0%0%0%

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers23.9full-time equivalent, 29 people
Pupils per teacher4.0Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers76%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants36.0full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£57,290
Teachers who left in the year11%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher8.22024/25

Money

From the council school accounts, year to March 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other special schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£63,406England £32,258. Total £5.8m
Income per pupil£64,839England £32,367. Total £5.9m
Spent on teachers per pupil£21,603England £11,930
Money in reserve16%A healthy amount put by: £912k, £10k per pupil. England 7%
Money in against money out+£130kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£63,406spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m45512 months to June 2026, mostly vehicle crime
Local crime rate59 per 1,000 people35% lower than the England average
Typical house price£650,000Wandsworth
Nearest bus stop160 mOak Lodge School, 9 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Holy Ghost Catholic Primary SchoolRoman Catholic150 m197Good 202496Compare
Broomwood Pre-Prep & Broomwood Prep-GirlsIndependent180 m321Not inspectedCompare
Balham Nursery SchoolLocal authority nursery school400 m48No overall grade 2025Compare
Hornsby House SchoolIndependent450 m433Not inspectedCompare
Chestnut Grove AcademyAcademy490 m1,327Good 202480Compare
Alderbrook Primary SchoolCouncil600 m216Good 202463Compare
Broomwood Prep - BoysIndependent600 m203Not inspectedCompare
Thomas's ClaphamIndependent710 m644Not inspectedCompare

Questions parents ask

Is Oak Lodge School a good school?

We don't have enough published data to score Oak Lodge School yet.

How good are Oak Lodge School's GCSE results?

In summer 2025, 0% of pupils got a grade 5 or better in both English and maths. Across England it was 46%. Its Attainment 8 score, which is the average grade across a pupil's best eight subjects times ten, was 0.7, against 46.8 for England. In each subject, pupils here finished about a grade behind children across England who started secondary school at the same level.

How many pupils does Oak Lodge School have?

96 pupils aged 10 to 19 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 100 places, so it is 96% full.

What is attendance like at Oak Lodge School?

Pupils were in school 90.5% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 43% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

Does Oak Lodge School have specialist SEND provision?

Yes. It is a special school for hearing impairment, speech, language and communication. To get a place there, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school.

Does Oak Lodge School have a sixth form?

Yes.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
101 Nightingale Lane, Balham, London, SW12 8NA
Telephone
020 8673 3453
Website
www.oaklodge.wandsworth.sch.uk
Executive Headteacher
Mrs Caroline Rowlandson
Type of school
Council special school (Community special school, special schools)
Phase
Special school, ages 10-19, with sixth form
Gender
Mixed
Local authority
Wandsworth
Ward
Balham
Constituency
Tooting
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
101094 · LAESTAB 2127068 · UKPRN 10004829

Recent changes

  • New KS4 results for 2024/25

Where these figures come from