The building itself tells a story spanning nearly 170 years. Originally established in 1857 as an orphanage by French nuns devoted to the Virgin Mary, the Gothic-styled structure has housed the pursuit of education continuously since, even through the Second World War when the orphanage closed but the school persisted. Today, The Laurels School reopened its doors at this historic Crystal Palace site in 2021, inheriting not just Victorian architecture but a profound educational legacy. The school itself is far more recent, founded in 2013 by the PACT Educational Trust, yet it has established itself quickly as a distinctively selective girls' school with a genuine Catholic ethos. The ISI inspection in February 2023 confirmed what families have experienced: Excellent in all areas. With 218 students aged 11 to 18, and a sixth form now in its fourth year already producing Oxbridge entrants, The Laurels represents an intriguing independent option for families across South London and beyond, one that emphasises character alongside academic achievement.
Mrs Maria Kemp has led the school since February 2025, continuing the vision shaped by her predecessor, Linda Sanders, who founded the school and remains closely associated with its identity. The school's motto, In Gaudio Serviamus (May we Serve Joyfully), reveals the philosophy woven through daily life. Prayer is spoken at the beginning of every lesson, not as ritual performed mechanically, but as a genuine expression of the school's Catholic identity. Mass occurs throughout the academic year, and students participate actively in assemblies, daily reflections, and the celebration of feast days integral to the Church's calendar.
The physical spaces reflect intention. The historic building, with its crimson brick exterior and soaring Gothic windows, creates a sense of gravitas and tradition. Yet the school feels alive to contemporary life. The campus shares facilities with The Cedars School for boys, allowing access to a sports hall and playing fields through partnership arrangements. The school's approach to space is pragmatic; though lacking comprehensive on-site sports facilities, the school has cultivated relationships with Agnes Riley Gardens (for the astro turf pitch), Balham Leisure Centre, Ferndale Community Sports Centre, and Mayfield Gymnastics Club, ensuring that girls access quality facilities for netball, athletics, hockey, basketball, football, gymnastics, and trampolining.
The FMS Inspection Score is FindMySchool's proprietary analysis based on official Ofsted and ISI inspection reports. It converts ratings into a standardised 1–10 scale for fair comparison across all schools in England.
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The school is unambiguously selective. Entry at 11+ requires examination in English and Mathematics set by the school itself, and not all candidates succeed. The entrance process filters for academic readiness and intellectual curiosity, establishing from the outset that this is a school that expects things. The school's own account emphasises that girls come from families who believe in a "character first" approach to education. This translates into a distinctive educational philosophy where the Arete Programme operates across five branches: Academic, Character Education, Philosophy, Enrichment, and Service-Leadership. The goal, explicitly stated, is achieving happiness through excellence. This framing distinguishes The Laurels from schools that treat character as an add-on to academics, or vice versa.
The school does not publish comprehensive GCSE data in the standard manner, as it operates as an independent school where these figures are not reliably aggregated nationally. However, data sourced from FindMySchool indicates performance worthy of note. In 2024, the school demonstrated that 62% of GCSE grades achieved 9-7 (A* to A), a result well above the England average of 54%. The interpretation is clear: academic ambition is being realised at the group level.
The school ranks 276th in England for GCSE performance (FindMySchool ranking), placing it in the top 10% nationally. Within the Croydon area, the school achieves 5th position locally among secondary schools, demonstrating competitive academic standing. These figures confirm what entry at 11+ through examination would suggest: pupils here are performing above the statistical middle and approaching the upper tiers of GCSE outcomes.
The sixth form, established only four years ago at the time of writing, remains small by design, allowing personal oversight and close relationships between students and staff. Early results, whilst still emerging from a young cohort, show developing strength. In 2024, 42% of A-level grades achieved A*-B, compared to the England average of 47%, suggesting the cohort is tracking in line with the upper-middle bands nationally. The school's A-level rank of 1917 in England indicates that, whilst the sixth form is consolidating, outcomes are solidifying within the national middle.
The true indicator of sixth-form success, however, appears in university progression. Of the 2023-24 cohort (six leavers), 67% progressed to university, with the school reporting multiple Russell Group placements and Oxbridge success. The achievement of Oxbridge entry in only the fourth year of sixth-form operation suggests selective recruitment and effective preparation rather than mature institutional scale.
England ranks and key metrics (where available)
A-Level A*-B
42.11%
% of students achieving grades A*-B
GCSE 9–7
61.7%
% of students achieving grades 9-7
The school operates a personalised curriculum model underpinned by the tutorial system. Every girl has a personal tutor alongside a form tutor, creating dual pathways for academic oversight and pastoral support. This tutorial system, unusual in day schools, involves regular termly meetings with families and rapid responsiveness to emerging learning needs. Staff describe their approach as identifying learning difficulties early through close observation and dialogue, with support cascading swiftly.
Subject breadth is conventional: English, Mathematics, and Further Mathematics form the core, with sciences taught separately (Biology, Chemistry, Physics). Beyond the core sit humanities (History, Religious Studies, Geography), languages (French, Spanish, Latin), creative subjects (Art, Drama, Music), and practical studies including Computer Science and Business Studies. The Arete Programme interlaces across all subjects; character development is not timetabled separately but threaded into lessons themselves. Teachers are tasked with developing not merely knowledge but the virtues — resilience, integrity, intellectual honesty — that enable learning.
The school emphasises rigorous academic expectation without what it describes as the "hot-house" pressure of overly competitive environments. Girls are pushed to think deeply, to ask questions, and to understand not merely how to pass examinations but why the content matters. This distinction, subtle in theory, proves significant in practice; families choose The Laurels not despite its academic rigour but because it combines rigour with genuine intellectual engagement rather than coaching alone.
For a school in only its fourth year of sixth-form operation, university progression data is encouraging. The 2024 leavers cohort saw 67% progress to university, with multiple students securing places at Russell Group institutions. The school reports that most students go on to Russell Group universities, with particular success in recent years in the hard sciences and classical subjects alongside contemporary fields like business and computer science. In the cohort studied, one Cambridge place was secured, demonstrating that even with a small sixth form, Oxbridge entry remains achievable.
The school does not publish detailed breakdowns of university destination by institution, preferring to highlight the range of outcomes from professional apprenticeships to direct employment alongside university entry. This reflects the school's stated philosophy that not all pathways are university-bound, and that excellence extends beyond higher education entry. For families considering the sixth form specifically, the emerging pattern suggests solid progression to competitive universities, particularly for students demonstrating strength in traditional subjects.
Total Offers
1
Offer Success Rate: 50%
Cambridge
1
Offers
Oxford
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Offers
Music plays an active, integral role in school life. Peripatetic tuition is available at The Laurels for piano, voice, flute, clarinet, violin, and cello, allowing girls to pursue instrumental learning within the school day and immediately. The music department runs a popular initiative called Sing Up, a midweek singing practice session employing vocal games and exercises designed to accelerate learning and develop focus. Girls prepare for hymns and responses that form part of the weekly Mass, making music both personal achievement and community participation. The annual school production provides the major performance opportunity, with roles both on stage and backstage (stage management, lighting, sound design), ensuring participation spans performers and technical creatives.
The annual school production operates at significant scale for a school of this size. Girls take roles in the dramatic work, whilst others serve as the Creative Team, managing stage design, lighting, and sound engineering. This production provides genuine theatre experience rather than assembly-hall versions, allowing students to engage with professional-level stagecraft alongside performance.
The STEM Club offers hands-on innovation projects explicitly designed to develop creativity, critical thinking, problem-solving ability, dexterity, and collaborative skills. The Maths Club provides support for those wanting additional help and extension activities for those seeking challenge, including preparation for the UK Mathematics Challenge competitions. The school enters students for these external mathematics competitions, recognising that intellectual stretch often comes from competition beyond the school's immediate walls.
The Debating Club provides structured training in public speaking and argumentative reasoning. Girls learn to engage with current affairs, understand multiple viewpoints, and develop persuasive communication. The school enters students for external competitions including the International Competition for Young Debaters and Oxford and Cambridge Schools' Debating Competitions, positioning the school within a national network of competitive discussion.
The school participates in the BBC School Report project, where pupils work as a team on articles, interviews, video and audio news reports covering local, national, and international stories. This provides real-world journalism experience, with student reporting culminating in broadcast-ready content.
Within sports, the school actively competes across netball, football, athletics, hockey, basketball, gymnastics, and trampolining through partnerships with local facilities. Whilst on-site provision is limited, the school has earned competitive success with relatively small cohorts. The South London Netball League and Lambeth girls' football championship have been won by Laurels teams, demonstrating that coaching quality and athlete development compensate for facility limitations. The school hosts Sports Day at Tooting Bec, providing an annual celebration of athletic achievement and competitive spirit across the year groups.
Beyond traditional clubs, the school operates through its Arete Programme's service-leadership branch, which emphasises community engagement and responsibility. Formal co-curricular activities are balanced with what the school terms "formation," the deliberate cultivation of virtue and character. This manifests in community service, leadership opportunities, and structured reflection on the school's Catholic values.
Fees are £18,135 to £19,095 per year, with variation reflecting curriculum tier and optional extras. This places The Laurels in the mid-range for London independent schools. The school offers both means-tested bursaries and merit scholarships. Scholarships, typically 5-15% of annual fees, are awarded in Mathematics, English, Overall Academic achievement, Art, and Music. The school also awards the Edith Stein Scholarship to a girl demonstrating commitment to excellence and potential to be a role model. All scholarships are renewable subject to continued progress and conduct.
Bursaries are available to support families unable to pay full fees, though the school does not publish the percentage of intake receiving support. Prospective families should contact the school directly to discuss financial support available. The school notes that it receives no outside funding and relies on fees and philanthropic support from the Friends of The Laurels, a parent-driven fundraising body supporting capital development.
Fees data coming soon.
Entry to The Laurels is selective. Prospective students at 11+ must sit entrance examinations in English and Mathematics set by the school, and interview. The school makes clear that not all applicants succeed; the entrance tests are designed to identify girls with solid foundational skills and intellectual readiness for the curriculum. Entry at Year 9 and into the sixth form follows similar selective processes.
The school operates a non-selective admissions policy in the formal sense (it does not operate a grammar school entrance test aligned to local authority arrangements), but the in-house entrance examination functions as a genuine filter. Families should register early and prepare daughters for examinations that test not merely standard coverage but deeper reasoning and comprehension. The school's own entrance papers are available on request from the school office, allowing prospective families to understand the standard expected.
The school indicates that entry is possible at 11+, 13+, and into the sixth form, with applications made directly to the school rather than through local authority coordinated admissions, as this is an independent institution.
The personal tutor system is the cornerstone of pastoral care. Each girl is assigned a tutor who meets her termly and is contactable by email with questions or concerns. These meetings involve the student and parents, creating a three-way conversation about academic progress and personal development. The system is designed so that no girl is anonymous; staff know her by name, understand her learning profile, and notice when things shift.
The school emphasises strong relationships between students, teachers, and parents as foundational to wellbeing. In religious terms, the Catholic ethos grounds care in dignity and service; practically, this translates to responsive staff attuned to girls' needs and ready to escalate concerns. For families troubled by the anonymity of larger comprehensives, or seeking greater pastoral oversight than day schools traditionally provide, The Laurels positions itself as genuinely knowing each student.
School day hours are not explicitly published, but typical independent school patterns suggest starting around 8:30am and finishing mid-afternoon. The school does not provide boarding, operating as a day school only. Uniform is required and reflects the school's traditional approach; details are available from the school website. Parents utilise local transport including buses to Crystal Palace, and some families travel from Chelsea, Clapham, Beckenham, and Dulwich using the school's own coach service, demonstrating that whilst geographically located in South London, the school draws from a wider London catchment.
Parking is available on the site; the location is accessible via public transport, with Crystal Palace train and tram stations providing connections. Travel planning is therefore straightforward, though families should verify journey times from their postcode, as South London traffic can be unpredictable.
Entrance selectivity. The school's filtering through examination means that not all applicants secure places. Families should be realistic about the standard: the entrance papers test depth of understanding, not merely surface knowledge. Prepare daughters appropriately but do not treat entry as guaranteed.
Small sixth form. The sixth form remains genuinely small, with limited subject breadth compared to larger schools. If your daughter intends to pursue an obscure combination of A-levels, this school may not offer that range. Subjects offered should be verified directly with the school, as provision continues to develop.
Limited on-site facilities. Girls do not have access to a swimming pool, tennis courts, or comprehensive sports halls on campus. The school mitigates this through partnerships with local facilities, but families preferring schools with comprehensive on-site infrastructure should factor this in. For netball, athletics, and gymnastics, the partnerships work well; for other activities, the school's provision is more variable.
Catholic ethos is genuine. Prayer at the beginning of lessons, Mass, and religious formation are not optional extras; they are central to school life. Families uncomfortable with this approach should explore alternative schools. The school is welcoming to students of other faiths and none, but faith is not incidental to the school's identity.
The Laurels School is a distinctive option for families seeking selective academics combined with genuine character formation, rooted in Catholic principles but welcoming to diverse backgrounds. The school punches above weight for an institution in its second decade of operation, with the ISI inspection confirming Excellent across all areas and GCSE and A-level results tracking solidly. The tutorial system and emphasis on personal knowledge of each student distinguish it from larger independent schools. The building itself, steeped in educational history, provides tangible continuity with values-based formation.
Best suited to intellectually capable girls whose families value character development alongside academic excellence, and who embrace or respect the school's Catholic ethos. The school is less suitable for families seeking maximum choice of facilities on campus or those uncomfortable with faith-centred community. For families willing to engage actively with the school's philosophy and travel to Crystal Palace, The Laurels offers a coherent, values-driven education at competitive fees.
Yes. The 2023 ISI inspection rated The Laurels Excellent in all areas. GCSE outcomes show 62% of grades at 9-7, well above the England average of 54%, and the school ranks in the top 10% of schools in England (FindMySchool ranking). The sixth form, now in its fourth year, has already achieved Oxbridge entry and demonstrates strong Russell Group progression.
Annual fees are £18,135 to £19,095. The school offers means-tested bursaries and merit scholarships (typically 5-15% of fees) in Mathematics, English, Overall Academic, Art, and Music. Families should contact the school directly to discuss financial support available.
Entry is selective. Prospective students at 11+ must sit entrance examinations in English and Mathematics, plus interview. The school's in-house examination filters for academic readiness and reasoning; not all applicants succeed. Families should prepare daughters appropriately and seek details of past papers from the school.
Each girl has a personal tutor alongside her form tutor. Tutors meet with students and parents termly, discussing academic progress and personal development. Tutors are contactable by email and respond to concerns within hours, creating a personalised oversight model unusual in day schools.
Prayer occurs at the beginning of lessons, and Mass is celebrated throughout the academic year. Religious studies is taught as a core subject, and girls participate in daily reflections and feast-day celebrations. The ethos is genuine but welcoming to students of all faiths and none. Families uncomfortable with faith-centred community should consider alternatives.
The school shares a sports hall with The Cedars School and has partnerships with local facilities including Agnes Riley Gardens (astro turf), Balham Leisure Centre, and others. On-site provision is limited, but students access quality facilities for netball, athletics, hockey, football, basketball, gymnastics, and trampolining. The school's teams have won South London Netball League and Lambeth football championships.
Get in touch with the school directly
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