School WiselyBeta

City of London Academy Islington[1]

Secondary · ages 11–18

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Headline results

Attainment 8
A8 46 46.1 2025/26[2]
A-level average grade
AL C C 2024/25[3]

Results

GCSE (key stage 4)

Attainment 8
46.1 2025/26[2]
Grade 5+ in English & maths
46.3% 2025/26[2]
Grade 7+ in English & maths
15.4% 2025/26[2]
Progress 8
+0.13 2023/24[4]
Progress 8, 2025/26
Not calculated[5]
Progress 8, 2024/25
Not calculated[5]
Earlier years
Year Attainment 8 Grade 5+ in English & maths Grade 7+ in English & maths Progress 8
2024/25 40.8[6] 37.6%[6]
2023/24 45.5[4] 37.4%[4] +0.13[4]
2022/23 47.6[7] 48%[7] -0.14[7]
2021/22 50.3[8] 53%[8] +0.17[8]

A level (16–18)

A-level average grade
C 2024/25[3]
AAB or better, at least two in facilitating subjects
0% 2024/25[3]
All results, 2020/21
Not published (exams cancelled, COVID-19)[9]
All results, 2019/20
Not published (exams cancelled, COVID-19)[9]
Earlier years
Year A-level average grade AAB or better, at least two in facilitating subjects
2023/24 C+[10] 9.3%[10]
2022/23 C+[11] 4.5%[11]
2021/22 B-[12] 17.6%[12]
2018/19 C+[13] 7.7%[13]

Destinations after GCSEs

Sustained education, apprenticeship or employment
90% 2022/23[14]
School sixth form
41% 2022/23[14]
Sixth-form college
0% 2022/23[14]
Further education college
46% 2022/23[14]
Apprenticeship
1% 2022/23[14]
Employment
1% 2022/23[14]
Earlier leavers
Left in Sustained education, apprenticeship or employment School sixth form Sixth-form college Further education college Apprenticeship Employment
2021/22 92%[15] 36%[15] 2%[15] 48%[15] 2%[15] 3%[15]
2020/21 96%[16] 40%[16] 2%[16] 45%[16] 0%[16] 7%[16]
2019/20 91%[17] 45%[17] 5%[17] 40%[17] 0%[17] 1%[17]
2018/19 89%[18] 36%[18] 4%[18] 48%[18] 0%[18] 1%[18]

Destinations after 16–18 study

Sustained education, apprenticeship or employment
85% 2022/23[19]
UK higher education
65% 2022/23[19]
Education
65% 2022/23[19]
Apprenticeship
6% 2022/23[19]
Employment
15% 2022/23[19]
Earlier leavers
Left in Sustained education, apprenticeship or employment UK higher education Education Apprenticeship Employment
2021/22 86%[20] 75%[20] 75%[20] 0%[20] 11%[20]
2020/21 88%[21] 85%[21] 88%[21] 0%[21] 0%[21]
2019/20 63%[22] 49%[22] 53%[22] 6%[22] 4%[22]
2018/19 84%[23] 61%[23] 67%[23] 0%[23] 16%[23]

Higher education after 16–18 study

Progressed to higher education
77% 2021/22[24]
Top third of most selective universities
28% 2021/22[24]
Russell Group universities
26% 2019/20[25]
Oxford or Cambridge
0% 2019/20[25]
Earlier leavers
Left in Progressed to higher education Top third of most selective universities Russell Group universities Oxford or Cambridge
2020/21 88%[26] 34%[26]
2019/20 62%[25] 26%[25] 26%[25] 0%[25]
2018/19 80%[27] 16%[27] 11%[27] 0%[27]
2017/18 74%[28] 15%[28] 10%[28] 0%[28]

Shares of the pupils who left in the year shown. Russell Group and Oxford or Cambridge figures were published for leavers up to 2019/20 only.

Ofsted

Latest inspection
1 Apr 2025[29]
Type
Section 8 inspection of good and outstanding schools[29]
Report published
13 May 2025[29]
Safeguarding is effective?
Yes[29]
Outcomes for ungraded and monitoring inspections
Standards maintained[29]
Earlier inspections
InspectionTypeOverall
13 Mar 2019[30] S5 Inspection[30] Outstanding[30]
15 May 2018[31] Maintained Academy and School Short inspection[31] No overall grade[31]

Competition to get in

Applications and offers, Year 7

Applications per place
3.4 Entry Sept 2026[32]
Applications (any preference)
461 Entry Sept 2026[32]
First preferences
106 Entry Sept 2026[32]
Places offered
136 Entry Sept 2026[32]
First preferences per place
0.8 Entry Sept 2026[32]
Earlier years
Entry Applications First preferences Places offered Per place First preferences per place
Entry Sept 2025 500[32] 109[32] 130[32] 3.8[32] 0.8[32]
Entry Sept 2024 544[32] 136[32] 162[32] 3.4[32] 0.8[32]
Entry Sept 2023 674[32] 177[32] 158[32] 4.3[32] 1.1[32]
Entry Sept 2022 741[32] 188[32] 159[32] 4.7[32] 1.2[32]

Admissions

Places (published admission number)
140 Entry Sept 2026[33]

Character & practicalities

Type
Academy sponsor led[1]
Ages
11–18[1]
Boys / girls
Mixed[1]
Admissions
Non-selective[1]
Sixth form
Yes[1]
Boarding
No boarders[1]
Capacity
805[1]
Trust
CITY OF LONDON ACADEMIES TRUST[1]
Local authority
Islington[1]
Website
www.colai.org.uk[1]
District
Islington[34]
Postcode
N1 8PQ[1]
URN
135587[1]

School details as recorded in Get Information About Schools on 14 Oct 2026.

Pupils

Number on roll
896 2024/25[35]
English as an additional language
38.8% 2024/25[35]
SEN support
8.4% 2024/25[35]
EHC plan
4.8% 2024/25[35]
Free school meals in the last 6 years
70.1% 2024/25[35]

Pupils' ethnicity 2025/26

White
43.1%[36]
Mixed
17.6%[36]
Asian
7.2%[36]
Black
21.5%[36]
Any other ethnic group
8.5%[36]
Unclassified
2.2%[36]

The school census's major ethnic groups as shares of the school's pupils, summed by us from the published counts. For information only: never used to rank, filter or colour schools.

Sources

  1. Department for Education: Get Information About Schools: all establishments. Period 2026-10-14, published 2026-10-14. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  2. Department for Education: Performance tables schools data (explore education statistics). Period 2025/26, provisional, published 2026-10-15. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  3. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS5 (16-18) final. Period 2024/25, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  4. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 final. Period 2023/24, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  5. Department for Education: Key stage 4 performance 2024/25: data guidance. Period 2024/25. Archived copy; original. Licence: OGL-3.0.
    Quote
    It is not possible to calculate Progress 8 for academic years 2024/25 and 2025/26 due to gaps in the baseline caused by COVID-19 disruption.
  6. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 final. Period 2024/25, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  7. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 final. Period 2022/23, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  8. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 final. Period 2021/22, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  9. Department for Education: A level and other 16 to 18 results 2020/21. Period 2020/21. Archived copy; original. Licence: OGL-3.0.
    Quote
    Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the summer exam series was cancelled in both 2020 and 2021, and alternative processes were set up to award grades.
  10. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS5 (16-18) final. Period 2023/24, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  11. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS5 (16-18) final. Period 2022/23, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  12. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS5 (16-18) final. Period 2021/22, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  13. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS5 (16-18) final. Period 2018/19, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  14. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 destinations. Period 2022/23, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  15. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 destinations. Period 2021/22, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  16. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 destinations. Period 2020/21, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  17. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 destinations. Period 2019/20, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  18. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 destinations. Period 2018/19, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  19. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 destinations. Period 2022/23, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  20. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 destinations. Period 2021/22, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  21. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 destinations. Period 2020/21, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  22. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 destinations. Period 2019/20, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  23. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 destinations. Period 2018/19, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  24. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 progression to higher education. Period 2021/22, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  25. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 progression to higher education. Period 2019/20, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  26. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 progression to higher education. Period 2020/21, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  27. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 progression to higher education. Period 2018/19, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  28. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 progression to higher education. Period 2017/18, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  29. Ofsted: State-funded schools inspections and outcomes. Period 2024/25. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  30. Ofsted: State-funded schools inspections and outcomes. Period 2018/19. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  31. Ofsted: State-funded schools inspections and outcomes. Period 2017/18. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  32. Department for Education: Primary and secondary school applications and offers: school level. Period Entry Sept 2026, final, published 2026-06-29. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  33. colai.org.uk: colai.org.uk — Apply. Period 2026-10-16. Licence: copyright-quoted.
    Quote
    City of London Academy Islington has an agreed admission number of 140 pupils. (p. 1)
  34. Office for National Statistics: Parish to Ward to Local Authority District (May 2026) Lookup in EW. Period 2026-05-01. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  35. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: School census. Period 2024/25, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  36. Department for Education: Schools, pupils and their characteristics: school level underlying data. Period 2025/26, published 2026-06-04. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.