SCHOOL PROFILE

Watergate School

Not applicable Foundation special school URN 100766
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 186 Published school capacity
Capacity used 99.5% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 4 – 11 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest ungraded inspection

10 March 2022
Latest published outcome School remains Outstanding
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Foundation special school
Phase Not applicable
Gender Mixed
Religious character Does not apply
Local authority Lewisham
Trust *Co-op Brent Knoll and Watergate Co-operative Trust
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 185 185 full-time · 0 part-time
Female pupils 46 24.9% of pupils
Male pupils 139 75.1% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

43.2%
18.4 pts above England
School 43.2%
Lewisham 27.8%
London 26.3%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

35.1%
14.8 pts above England
School 35.1%
Lewisham 31.5%
London 39.2%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

0.0%
1.0 pts below England
School 0.0%
Lewisham 0.6%
London 0.5%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

African
23.2%
43
White British
16.2%
30
Any other Mixed background
12.4%
23
Caribbean
10.3%
19
White and Black Caribbean
9.7%
18
Any other White background
7.6%
14
Council, regional and national comparisons are pupil-weighted using published school census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS

Special educational needs

Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.

2025/26
Pupils with SEN 100.0% 185 of 185 pupils
79.2 pts above England England: 20.8%
School 100.0%
Lewisham 21.8%
London 19.8%
England 20.8%
SEN support 2.2% 4 pupils
England 14.8% 12.6 pts below
EHC plans 97.8% 181 pupils
England 6.0% 91.8 pts above
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Specific learning difficulty 46
Severe learning difficulty 44
Speech, language & communication 39
Autistic spectrum disorder 37
Profound & multiple learning difficulty 11
Hearing impairment 2

SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Key stage 2 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading, writing & maths

0.0% 60.4 pts below England
School 0.0%
Lewisham 64.8%
London 67.9%
England 60.4%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading

0.0%

73.8 pts below England

School 0.0%
Lewisham 75.9%
London 78.2%
England 73.8%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Writing

0.0%

70.3 pts below England

School 0.0%
Lewisham 71.4%
London 75.1%
England 70.3%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Maths

0.0%

72.0 pts below England

School 0.0%
Lewisham 73.9%
London 77.7%
England 72.0%
School results show the percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard. Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages and are not pupil-weighted official attainment rates.
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE

Attendance profile

Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.

2024/25
ABSENCE RATE

Overall absence

10.41%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

4.19 pts higher than England
School 10.41%
Lewisham 5.79%
London 6.38%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

35.63%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

19.82 pts higher than England
School 35.63%
Lewisham 16.14%
London 17.60%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

2.30%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

0.50 pts higher than England
School 2.30%
Lewisham 1.28%
London 1.67%
England 1.80%
Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages rather than pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

School context

Comparison with open not applicable schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

99.5% 19.7 pts above England
Watergate School
99.5%
Lewisham
80.7%
London
75.9%
England
79.8%
Benchmarks use open schools in the same phase. Capacity utilisation is calculated from published pupil and capacity figures.
Sources: Department for Education · Get Information about Schools · Ofsted monthly management information