School Chooser

St Philip's School

Special · ages 9-19MixedAcademy187 pupilsSixth form Free breakfast clubChessingtonKingston upon Thames
School Chooser ScoreNot scoredWe don't score this type of school.
OfstedGoodLast Ofsted inspection, January 2023
Strong pass in English and maths0%England 46%
Attendance88.1%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families45%Far more than most schools
PlacesFull187 pupils, 185 places
Pupils per teacher5.9School workforce census

St Philip's School is a special academy in Chessington for boys and girls aged 9 to 19. It has 187 pupils, 2 more than it has places for. About 45 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2023.

Harrow Close, Leatherhead Road, Chessington, KT9 2HR020 8397 2672stphilips-chessington.orgMr Ben Walsh headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 17 January 2023, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall.

TeachingOfsted calls this “quality of education”
Good
BehaviourOfsted calls this “behaviour and attitudes”
Good
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development”
Outstanding
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Good
Sixth formOfsted calls this “post-16”
Good
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes

Results

GCSE results, summer 2025

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

Average GCSE score2.8
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 11-1.47In 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: 2.32.320182019: 1.91.920192022: 2.22.220222023: 3.33.320232024: 1.71.720242025: 2.82.82025
Since 2018: +0.5
All GCSE measures, year by year
Measure202520242023202220192018Kingston upon ThamesEngland
Pupils at the end of Year 11263127262417
Average GCSE scoreAttainment 82.81.73.32.21.92.359.946.8
Progress from age 11Progress 8-1.47-1.67-1.83-1.77-1.59
Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths0%0%0%0%0%0%70%46%
Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths0%0%0%0%0%0%84%66%
Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score0.120.050.130.070.070.105.584.15
Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry0%0%0%0%0%0%66%41%
Average GCSE score: low-income pupilsAttainment 8, disadvantaged2.53.45.73.52.42.4
Average GCSE score: other pupilsAttainment 8, non-disadvantaged3.00.92.10.91.32.2
Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers2.02.12.41.32.8

Subjects

Results came out for 2 GCSE subjects in 2025. Each figure is the share of pupils who got a grade 5 or better, next to the average for state secondaries in England.

What is taught here

The small number is how many pupils sat each subject. Subjects with fewer than six pupils aren't published.

Every subject against England, 2025
SubjectEntriesGrades 9 to 7Grades 9 to 5Grades 9 to 4England 9 to 5Rank in England
Mathematics90%0%0%53%
Art and Design60%17%33%58%

In combined science each pupil gets two grades and we count the lower one. Rankings only include state secondaries where 20 or more pupils sat the subject.

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

9 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 110%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level0%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading scoreOfficial name: Reading average scaled score
Maths scoreOfficial name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2019 to 2025
2019: 0%0%20192023: 0%0%20232024: 0%0%20242025: 0%0%2025
Since 2019: +0%
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure2025202420232019Kingston upon ThamesEngland
Pupils tested912712
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths0%0%0%0%66%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths0%0%0%0%12%8%
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score99.0106.5104.6
Expected level: readingReading expected standard0%0%0%0%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard0%0%0%8%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)0%0%0%0%
Reading progressReading progress score-9.0-15.5
Maths progressMaths progress score-7.0-12.5

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.

Does every child do well here?

A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. Every gap at this school is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.

At GCSE, 2025

Average GCSE scoreLow-income pupils vs other pupils
2.53.0
Gap 0.5England 12.2
Strong pass in English and mathsLow-income pupils vs other pupils
0%0%
No gapEngland 22 pts
Average GCSE scoreBoys vs girls
3.61.2
Gap 2.4England 3.0
First groupSecond groupEngland, each group

Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.

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 Kingston upon Thames council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.

Pupils on roll187Census January 2026
Places185101% full
Pupils from low-income families43%45% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English23%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support0%0 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan100%187 pupils with a plan
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)42%£77,700 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls122 / 65
White British pupils55%

Specialist SEND provision. A special school for pupils with moderate learning difficulties.

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 Kingston upon Thames with moderate learning difficulties provision.

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Autistic spectrum disorder (67), Moderate learning difficulty (36), language and communications needs (36), emotional and mental health (17), Severe learning difficulty (7), Physical disability (6).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll187183182178178172
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals43%39%35%35%34%30%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language23%22%20%16%18%17%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support1%0%0%0%0%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans100%100%100%100%100%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 88.1% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance88.1%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school36.6%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils6.62024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.9%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence11.9%14.6%14.9%12.3%8.1%8.0%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence10.1%12.9%13.3%10.4%6.7%6.9%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.9%1.7%1.6%1.9%1.4%1.1%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence36.6%43.0%45.1%39.0%25.0%20.7%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate6.69.312.46.24.7
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

What pupils do next

After GCSEs

Where the 27 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.

Still in education, work or training93%and stayed there for at least six months

Among pupils from low-income families it was 89%, compared with 94% for everyone else.

Earlier years
Destination2022/23 leavers2021/22 leavers2020/21 leavers2019/20 leavers
Still in education, work or training93%92%92%100%
Education93%92%92%100%
Apprenticeship0%0%0%0%
Work0%0%0%0%
Not in education, work or training4%8%4%0%

Staff and money

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

Teachers31.8full-time equivalent, 34 people
Pupils per teacher5.9Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers91%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants18.8full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£55,816
Teachers who left in the year3%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher2.42024/25

Money

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

Spend per pupil£25,440England £30,720. Total £4.7m
Income per pupil£29,799England £33,526. Total £5.5m
Spent on teachers per pupil£13,630England £11,966
Money in reserve20%A healthy amount put by: £1.1m, £5,868 per pupil. England 16%
Money in against money out+£802kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£25,440spent 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 m22712 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate66 per 1,000 people28% lower than the England average
Typical house price£550,000Kingston upon Thames
Nearest bus stop220 mChessington South, 14 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
Ellingham Primary SchoolCouncil70 m276Report card 202632Compare
Chessington SchoolAcademy180 m653Good 202462Compare
St Mary's CofE (Aided) Primary SchoolChurch of England710 m170Good 202224Compare
Lovelace Primary SchoolCouncil880 m530No overall grade 202430Compare
Castle Hill Primary SchoolAcademy0.7 miles514No overall grade 202528Compare
St Paul's CofE Primary SchoolChurch of England0.8 miles209Good 202264Compare
Southborough High SchoolAcademy1.2 miles935Good 202374Compare
Tolworth Girls' School and Sixth FormAcademy1.3 miles1,529Outstanding 202394Compare

Questions parents ask

Is St Philip's School a good school?

St Philip's School doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it good at its last inspection in January 2023.

What is St Philip's School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated St Philip's School good at its last full inspection on 17 January 2023.

How good are St Philip's 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 2.8, 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 good are St Philip's School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 0% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 0% went further and reached the higher level. The year group was small, so the percentages jump around a lot from year to year.

How many pupils does St Philip's School have?

187 pupils aged 9 to 19 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 185 places, so it is 101% full.

What is attendance like at St Philip's School?

Pupils were in school 88.1% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 37% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

Does St Philip's School have specialist SEND provision?

Yes. It is a special school for moderate learning difficulties. To get a place there, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school.

Does St Philip's School have a breakfast club?

Yes. It is on the government's free breakfast club programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school.

Does St Philip's 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
Harrow Close, Leatherhead Road, Chessington, KT9 2HR
Telephone
020 8397 2672
Website
www.stphilips-chessington.org
Headteacher
Mr Ben Walsh
Free breakfast club
Yes: on the government's programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school (listed since September 2026).
Type of school
Special academy (Academy special converter, academies)
Phase
Special school, ages 9-19, with sixth form
Gender
Mixed
Multi-academy trust
Orchard Hill College Academy Trust (13 schools)
Local authority
Kingston upon Thames
Ward
Chessington South & Malden Rushett
Constituency
Kingston and Surbiton
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
Opened
1 April 2016 (academy converter)
URN
142740 · LAESTAB 3147001 · UKPRN 10056072
Formerly
St Philip's School

Recent changes

  • New KS4 results for 2024/25

Where these figures come from