The St Thomas the Apostle College

Southwark · SE15 2EB

General information Secondary School · 11-18 years Who goes here 1140 pupils, 46.4% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted: Outstanding

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 10.9% on SEN support Behaviour 5.0% absence rate Staff 26.6% turnover Financials £10,002 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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The St Thomas the Apostle College

General Information

Address: Hollydale Road, Nunhead, London, SE15 2EB – View on map
Phone: 02076390106
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr Eamon Connolly
Age range: 11-18 years
Demand for places (Year 7, September 2026): 181 families put it first for 150 places – 12 for every 10 places. 65% of them were offered a place. 52 of the 150 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 10 · 2024 8 · 2025 9 · 2026 12
Sixth form: Yes
Intake: Boys
Religious character: Roman Catholic
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

1140 pupils out of 1000 places At or near capacity

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 385
% eligible for free school meals: 46.4%
Pupil mix: 6 in 10 (less mixed than the Southwark average)
English as an additional language: 30% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 26.6% a year (Southwark 22.8%, typical in England 15.5%)
Where they went: about 37% moved to another school, 63% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house.

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Across Southwark: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 31 (1.6 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.7)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 33 (1.7 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.9)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 8 (0.4 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.8)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state secondary schools in Southwark, not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 5.0%
Persistently absent pupils: 12.4%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

Pupils on SEN Support: 10.9%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.8%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Speech, language and communications needs: 50 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 39 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 26 pupils
Physical disability: 5 pupils
SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need: 3 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 17 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 8 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 5 pupils
Physical disability: 2 pupils

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

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Behaviour

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Openness

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Teaching Quality

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School Ethos

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Ability to Deal with Problems

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Headteacher Approval

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SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

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Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Outstanding 2018 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted changed how it rates schools in the last couple of years, so ratings from different years aren't always on the same scale - that's why we show the year alongside every rating.

Attainment 8 score: 61.7
Compared with the area: 8.8 points above the Southwark average (52.9)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Well above (+17.9 points against an expected 43.8)
Grade 4+ in English and maths: 86% (Southwark 74%, England 65%) Broadly steady
Data year: 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

GCSE results over time

This schoolSouthwark averageEngland↘ Falling Down 2.0 points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was 8.8 points above the Southwark average (52.9).

About the Attainment 8 score

Attainment 8 measures a pupil's average result across 8 GCSE-equivalent qualifications (English and maths count double). It shows how pupils performed, not how much progress they made getting there - a school with a higher score doesn't necessarily add more value, since pupils often arrive with different starting points. Progress 8 is the measure designed to account for that, but it currently can't be calculated for any school for the two most recent academic years, due to a nationwide gap in the data caused by COVID-19 disruption to Key Stage 2 testing.

2nd of 20 secondary schools in Southwark for Attainment 8

#1The Charter School North Dulwich65.0
#2The St Thomas the Apostle College61.7
#3Kingsdale Foundation School59.9
#4Sacred Heart Catholic School58.0

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

Rank School Score

#1The Charter School North Dulwich65.0
#2The St Thomas the Apostle College61.7
#3Kingsdale Foundation School59.9
#4Sacred Heart Catholic School58.0
#5St Michael's Catholic College58.0
#6The Charter School East Dulwich56.3
#7Harris Boys' Academy East Dulwich55.5
#8Harris Academy Bermondsey54.6
#9Harris Girls' Academy East Dulwich54.3
#10City of London Academy (Southwark)52.9
#11St Saviour's and St Olave's Church of England School52.7
#12Bacon's College49.4
#13Ark Globe Academy48.4
#14Haberdashers' Borough Academy47.8
#15Ark All Saints Academy45.2
#16Ark Walworth Academy43.3
#17Notre Dame Catholic Girls' School42.8
#18South Bank University Academy41.5
#19The Charter School Bermondsey40.9
#20Harris Academy Peckham39.3

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 97.0%
Went into further education: 96.0%
Data year: 2024/25

About leaver destinations

This shows where a school's Year 11 leavers were recorded the following year - in a "sustained" destination means in education, an apprenticeship, or employment for at least 6 months, not just enrolled briefly. It's a different picture from exam results alone, and can highlight schools that support pupils well beyond just their GCSE grades.

GCSE Subjects Offered

Maths (General)
English Literature
English Language
Religious Studies
Science Double Award
History
Italian
Geography
French Language
Economics
Computer Science
Biology
Chemistry (General)
Physics (General)
Statistics
Business Studies
Sports Studies
D & T
Music Studies (General)
Spanish
Art & Design
Speech & Drama
Portuguese

About this subject list

This isn't the school's own description of its curriculum - it's real DfE exam entry data, showing which GCSE subjects this school's pupils were actually entered for in 2024/25. A subject not appearing here may still be taught but had no pupils entered that year, so treat this as a helpful guide rather than a complete guarantee - it's worth confirming directly with the school for the year your child would actually study.

View full Ofsted inspection report

5th of 14 secondary schools in Southwark for Ofsted rating

#3Kingsdale Foundation SchoolOutstanding
#4Sacred Heart Catholic SchoolOutstanding
#5The St Thomas the Apostle CollegeOutstanding
#6Ark All Saints AcademyGood
#7Ark Walworth AcademyGood

Click to see the full ranking

Ofsted Rating ranking

Based on real Ofsted ratings (via official DfE data) for schools on the same four-word grading scale.

Rank School Score

#1Harris Boys' Academy East DulwichOutstanding
#2Harris Girls' Academy East DulwichOutstanding
#3Kingsdale Foundation SchoolOutstanding
#4Sacred Heart Catholic SchoolOutstanding
#5The St Thomas the Apostle CollegeOutstanding
#6Ark All Saints AcademyGood
#7Ark Walworth AcademyGood
#8Bacon's CollegeGood
#9Haberdashers' Borough AcademyGood
#10Harris Academy PeckhamGood
#11St Saviour's and St Olave's Church of England SchoolGood
#12The Charter School BermondseyGood
#13The Charter School East DulwichGood
#14Notre Dame Catholic Girls' SchoolRequires improvement

Financials

Spending per pupil: £10,002 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

13th of 19 secondary schools in Southwark for spending per pupil

#11Sacred Heart Catholic School£10,203
#12St Michael's Catholic College£10,074
#13The St Thomas the Apostle College£10,002
#14Harris Girls' Academy East Dulwich£9,851
#15Kingsdale Foundation School£9,651

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

Rank School Score

#1Ark All Saints Academy£12,380
#2St Saviour's and St Olave's Church of England School£12,145
#3Bacon's College£12,006
#4Harris Academy Peckham£11,651
#5Ark Walworth Academy£11,121
#6Ark Globe Academy£10,692
#7Harris Academy Bermondsey£10,682
#8Notre Dame Catholic Girls' School£10,645
#9City of London Academy (Southwark)£10,533
#10The Charter School Bermondsey£10,409
#11Sacred Heart Catholic School£10,203
#12St Michael's Catholic College£10,074
#13The St Thomas the Apostle College£10,002
#14Harris Girls' Academy East Dulwich£9,851
#15Kingsdale Foundation School£9,651
#16Harris Boys' Academy East Dulwich£9,389
#17Haberdashers' Borough Academy£9,267
#18The Charter School East Dulwich£8,378
#19The Charter School North Dulwich£8,129

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

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General Information

Who goes here

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Behaviour

Across Southwark: suspensions by reason

Attendance

SEN

Most common needs - SEN Support

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Educational Attainment

Attainment 8 ranking

Leaver Destinations ?

GCSE Subjects Offered ?

Ofsted Rating ranking

Financials

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Leaver Destinations

GCSE Subjects Offered