London school rated exceptional across all five Ofsted areas

Forest Gate Community School in Newham, east London, received the top rating in its latest inspection in July 2026 for achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, leadership and governance, and personal development and wellbeing.

Ofsted described the impact of the curriculum as "remarkable," highlighting "exemplary" pupil behaviour and "exceptional" teaching.

Stacey Lord, headteacher at Forest Gate Community School, said: "Poverty should never predict a child’s future. We are immensely proud of this report because it recognises the exceptional school our pupils, families and staff have built together. Forest Gate pupils deserve an exceptional school."

Located in London’s most deprived borough, the school serves a community facing significant disadvantage, with nearly 45 per cent of pupils eligible for free school meals compared to the national average of 28.9 per cent.

Despite these challenges, Ofsted found that students "achieve highly across all year groups, subjects and pupil groups," including those who are disadvantaged, have special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), or are known to social care.

Inspectors noted that "disadvantaged pupils consistently achieve more highly than non-disadvantaged pupils nationally," a trend that has been sustained over time.

In the most recent results reviewed, 60 per cent of disadvantaged students at Forest Gate achieved grade 5 or above in English and maths GCSEs, outperforming the 53.1 per cent of non-disadvantaged pupils nationally.

Ms Lord said: "Our disadvantaged pupils consistently outperform non-disadvantaged pupils nationally, which is something our whole community should be enormously proud of. But those results don’t happen by accident and they aren’t the only thing that matters to us. We refuse to let poverty put a ceiling on a child’s ambition."

The school places a strong emphasis on teacher development and has previously been recognised by the TES Schools Awards and Pearson National Teaching Awards.

Ofsted praised the school’s teaching approach, which is grounded in "highly effective, current educational research," and noted that pupils are "known, valued and exceptionally well prepared for the next steps in their educational journey."

Beyond academic achievement, the school’s Prestigious Colleges Programme has helped pupils secure places at leading schools such as Eton, Westminster, and Marlborough College.

Ms Lord said: "We don’t close the disadvantage gap by lowering the bar. We give every child what they need to clear it.

"Ofsted says our work transforms pupils’ life chances. There can be no greater recognition of what our staff come to work every day to achieve."