Wapping High School

About Wapping High School

Wapping High School was rated Good overall in its most recent Ofsted inspection in November 2023, a rating it has held consistently across both its recent inspections. The inspection report singled out personal development as Outstanding, the highest possible grade, while behaviour and attitudes, leadership and management, and quality of education were all judged Good. On the most informative exam metric available, the school’s Progress 8 score for the 2023/24 academic year sits at 0.04, which is broadly in line with the national average. This means that, on average, pupils at Wapping High achieve about as much progress from Key Stage 2 to Key Stage 4 as pupils across England. The score places the school 11th out of 17 secondary schools in Tower Hamlets, and 1,430th out of 3,141 schools nationally. While the local authority average Progress 8 score is slightly higher at 0.09, Wapping High’s result is still comfortably within the ‘Average’ banding.

Looking more closely at the breakdown, pupils at Wapping High made stronger progress in maths (0.2) and English (0.16) than in the EBacc subjects (0.02) or open subjects (-0.13). The Attainment 8 score of 46.9 reflects the average grade achieved across eight GCSE subjects, and 55.6% of pupils achieved a grade 5 or above in both English and maths (the basics 5 measure). The proportion of pupils entered for the English Baccalaureate is relatively low at 16%, and only 8.6% achieved it at grade 5 or above. This suggests the school focuses its curriculum more on breadth than on the EBacc combination. The school has a higher-than-average proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals at 34%, and its total roll of 294 is well below its capacity of 420, meaning the school is not full.

Wapping High is a mixed, non-denominational secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16, with no sixth form. It is heavily oversubscribed for Year 7 entry in 2025/26, receiving 149 applications for just 34 places, a ratio of 4.38 applicants per place, though only 18 of those were first-preference applications. The school offers a wide range of facilities including a theatre, swimming pool, playing fields, science labs, and music rooms, and runs clubs such as the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, coding, and Young Enterprise. Its SEND provisions cover specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech and language needs, hearing impairment, and autistic spectrum disorder. This combination of solid academic progress, strong personal development, and a broad extracurricular offer makes Wapping High a practical choice for families in Tower Hamlets who want a supportive, community-focused secondary school without a religious character.

Key Details

Frequently Asked Questions About Wapping High School

Helpful Guides for Parents