City of London Academy (COLA) Shoreditch Park

Here is some feedback for anyone thinking of COLASP:

For September 2025, my son was offered a place at COLASP. which was our second choice. Later we received an offer from our first-choice school - which is a nationally recognised school, Although my son was doing extremely well at COLASP, we still moved him, to that other school believing it would offer better long-term prospects.. Within three weeks, I realised the mistake and I am now in the process of returning him to COLASP with great urgency and complete certainty.

When at t COLASP— every morning my son leapt out of bed eager and joyful to go to school. Every afternoon he returned home joyful, confident, and very self-motivated to complete his homework without even my needing to prompt him. And he consistently spoke with admiration about all of his teachers. We also faced zero issues at COLASP.

COLASP’s approach to behaviour seems to be consistent, structured, and relentless. I am aware there is regular or daily behaviour coaching in class, making expectations on standards of behaviour clear, with diligent follow-through and the great thing is - it really feels as though the school does not grow weary of it's tasks or goals.

The staff at reception are supportive and very approachable, The Head of year 8 is really amazing - she performs with consistent diligence, empathic understanding and care. As a parent, there is no greater reassurance than knowing your child is in safe, capable, and compassionate hands. i was never worried about my child when he was at COLASP.

I am quite sure that this school is on track to becoming the best school in Hackney and I genuinely look forward to supporting it in every way I can in the years ahead. I really hope they will get more funding so that they can expand on their provisions.

For me, COLASP is a school with heart, ambition, great professionalism and integrity — and it is where my son truly belongs.

Thanks so much for this, it is really helpful! What you are saying mirrors how we are feeling about it, most appreciated!

Oh no Afrokimmy, it sounds like your boy is off to a frustrating start! I am really sorry to hear it…

I’m sorry your son has had difficult moments already, especially when he has always had good feedback from teachers before.

I know what you mean about the discipline. They do come across as very firm with Year 7 at the beginning. My feeling is it’s about setting clear expectations rather than being heavy-handed for its own sake.

We have gone back to staff with a few questions of our own and they have been responsive once spoken to directly, so a meeting sounds like a good idea.

I also like the merits and behaviour points on MCAS. It gives a clear picture of how the day is going and makes it easier to talk things through at home.

It is still early days and lessons are only just settling into a rhythm. I really hope they are responsive and this gets resolved swiftly.

I’m not the OP but my child has just started at Shoreditch Park without knowing anyone, so I can share our experience so far too. Bear in mind we are still new to the school and learning. This is my DCs second week.

Our child loves it. The infrastructure and pastoral care are excellent and the teaching goes beyond delivering subjects. They show the children why each subject matters and build a sense of purpose, more like a good independent school. The focus is on the whole child and on raising each student’s expectations of themselves.

It is a strict school but not punitive. When I asked about bullying my child said they have not seen any. That does not mean it never happens, only that we can speak to our own experience. If a pupil struggles or acts out, the behaviour tends to be directed at the system rather than at other children. Teachers are not left to cope alone. There is a clear process for immediate support so another staff member can step in and help that child get the right care without interrupting the class.

Every detail is designed around learning and inclusion. Their SEND provision is fully woven into daily teaching and supported by outside specialists. I went to a coffee morning focused on this and was struck by how thoughtful and integrated it is.

The academic results are equally striking. In the email we received this month about exam outcomes, the school reported a Progress 8 score of +1.21, meaning pupils achieved on average more than a full grade higher than similar pupils nationally. That places the school firmly in the top ten percent of schools across the country, and its Attainment 8 score is also well above the national average.

The building itself helps. It is modern, clean and laid out so children can move easily. There is a freshness to it that my child says makes it easier to focus. The school is still relatively new and perhaps a little under the radar, but it has already been rated Ofsted Outstanding and its recent GCSE and A level results now stand alongside those of many high-performing independent schools.

I appreciate this is a lot of information, but we have just been genuinely impressed by what we have seen so far and are happy to share it in case it helps. Because it is such a new school it is still building its reputation. Take Mary Magdalene’s in Islington, for example: they accept only about fifteen children a year from outside their catchment and those pupils sit an entrance exam, yet their published results are nowhere near the level Shoreditch Park is already achieving. And look at Central Foundation Boys, which is a long-established and highly sought-after school. It remains very popular and families may still choose it over Shoreditch Park for now, yet its most recent Attainment 8 score is lower. After receiving the school’s latest results letter, it is clear to me that Shoreditch Park has already moved into a different league. Reputations take time to catch up with reality, and my sense is that as more families see these results Shoreditch Park will become far better known and valued.

OP, how is your son finding it now he has started? We live nearby and just looked at it yesterday; we thought it seemed great but are perplexed at how under our radar it was. Would be good to know from some of those who have just started whether it is living up to expectations so far?

Definitely not too late to pick options. I visited yesterday on the last day of year 9 and they were finalising them. But there isn't loads of choice. If you're on the GCSE track you do RE and Spanish as compulsory, and you choose between history and geography. So that only leaves one free choice, though there's quite a range. On the more vocational tracks you might get more choice.

The student showing us round mentioned skiing, aquarium, battle grounds.

I don't know about supervision getting home. They might be open to the suggestion as they're very keen on improving behaviour, reducing opportunities for bullying etc.

Be good to hear from parents that have kids that have started, as most parents on this thread have children who are about to start. It’s a pretty new thread. Looking on Google you’re in good time for picking subjects, this happens during year 9 apparently.

I didn’t hear any mention of teachers standing at bus routes, I like this idea and will ask.

We did a one on one tour and asked lots of questions, directly to the child giving us the tour. We had a member of staff with us too. They get involved in lots of trips, because they are so well behaved they get invited to go places. And if you do well in class and basically do your best a small group get taken out for a treat. Thry are very focused of behaviour and good communication. I think the context is set for them that they’ll do well in life if they know how to behave and communicate well, rather thank killing their spirit and turning them into robots. They are given the social skills a lot of private schools teach.

Hello all. I'm thinking of making an in-year application for my child who would be in year 9 come September. (we were offered an in-year place early on in year 8 which we rejected and I now regret- due to current school not being quite right) I would really like some insight as to when they choose their GCSE subjects. does this happen in year 9 or does it happen in year 8. My child is really interesting in computer science and would like that as an option- I'm just concerned if we've missed the options window. I'd also like to get an idea of how the students are monitored once they leave the school premises at end of the school day(if at all). Do teachers wait at bus stops? Or along the side roads? to make sure that the students are ok/going home ( This isn't a big deal I just know that some schools do this). Also I'd be interested if the school offers field trips and where too. I have visited the school before but sometimes school visits are not enough and parent insight is valuable. appreciate any information. thank you

Thanks sounds good, I am going tomorrow to talk to them about my daughter maybe starting there

Also regarding not much online about it. I’m guessing it’s because it’s so new.

Its just been upgraded to outstanding too.

The general conversation is very positive. So it’s slowly building a reputation. Yes it’s strict. No phones, no talking in the halls. Detentions for rudeness. I think there’s a lot to remember as a new kid starting. It’s got a very peaceful vibe.

My child is starting in September so we don’t have a lot of experience to share. Other than our visits.

The children are really well behaved. They have a great system for handling disruptions. Where all children are taken care of.

They aren’t allowed to talk in the halls. It creates less bullying.

my son is looking forward to it. It’s run with the energy of a private school. And the building is great, designed with the children in mind. Very modern.

The year 7s are doing PGL just a month into starting, to help them make friends. So it’s well funded.

It’s out performing all local schools. But until we actually start this is all I can share.

Hello, sorry to revive this old thread. I started my own but didn't get any responses. My dd1 is looking to move schools (will be starting year 10 in September). There aren't many options locally so we are looking slightly further afield. Hackney Council has said this school has a space and on paper it looks really good but I don't know much about it and can't find any threads mentioning it other than this one. So just wondering if you're all still happy with the school and whether you have any more insight as to what it is that makes this a good school.

In particular what does very strict look like in practice?

Why do you think this school flies so far under the radar? Is it simply because it is new school and it takes time to establish a reputation or is there more to it?

Any and all thoughts you'd like to share would be gratefully received

I would look at the basketball england website as they have lots of links about how to find a club. AT the moment I will leave aside COLA as they don't run U12 programmes (and are based out of south London) so maybe the first instance is to find a club in north London that has an U12 programme. The standard of U14 Premier level is ridiculously high in London so maybe an U12 programme is the best first step as he has never done any formal training (and has no doubt development bad habits) or a team who run both a premier and conference U14 team (as the conference team is usually U13's).

I know Hackney Wolves, BAD Thunder, Newham Youngbloods, London All stars are all fairly local but the issue is the basketball season is about 2 weeks away from ending. There will be trials for next seasons teams coming up so contact the clubs you might want to attend and ask them to let you know when trials are - they may also run pay as you play sessions once the season is over which might be a good intro.

ForLemonTraybake, you're not alone in terms of Mossbourne. There's another thread about how the Mossbourne schools are being formally investigated. Alongside ColaSP, Bridge and Haggerston are worth a look. Lots transfer out of Mossbourne to go there.

Playing school basketball is not going to help get a scholarship. He needs to be playing national league premier level and then head to an elite UK academy at 16 of which COLA have one. They also have excellent boys basketball teams and play national league but are based out of their southwark site. Does he play NBL currently?

We had a child at private school for part of his early education, there’s a well known thread on here about the school itself, but online advertising etc, it looks perfect. It was terrible, hot housing was intense, we got him out asap. So I really understand your position. Once we did and he settled into his new state school he flourished. I hope you’re able to make the changes needed.

I came here to read experience of other hackney schools because my dc is pleading to leave mossbourne. I wont go into detail but truly, all that glitters is not gold.