Notting Hill & Ealing High School GDST

Ranked first in Ealing for both GCSE and A-level results, Notting Hill & Ealing High School is one of the strongest girls' schools in England, and it earns that standing without behaving like an exam factory. Founded in 1873 and part of the Girls' Day School Trust, it takes girls from age 4 to 18 across a junior and senior school on one Ealing site, with a whole-school roll of around 930. Head Allison Saunders leads a selective, academically ambitious community where 91% of GCSE grades reach A*/A, and where the sixth form still finds room for a symphony orchestra, a 25-metre pool and a Dissection club. It is a day school with no boarding, drawing families from across west London. Fees sit at the upper end for the area, softened by means-tested bursaries and a broad scholarship programme.

This is a school with a clear sense of purpose. The Girls' Day School Trust opened it in 1873 as the Notting Hill & Bayswater School, with founder Harriette Jones starting out with a single teaching assistant and ten pupils in Norland Square. The move west to Ealing came over Christmas 1930, and the school has been rooted in the borough ever since. That long GDST lineage matters: it places NHEHS inside England's largest family of girls' schools, giving it shared bursary funds, staff development and a century-and-a-half habit of taking girls' education seriously.

The stated ambition is to empower girls to become insightful, innovative and courageous women, and the five core values, Integrity, Curiosity, Courage, Ambition and Humanity, are not decorative. The ISI inspection of March 2025 found the school met all the required Standards, describing a community where pupils of all ages show a genuine love of learning and where leaders set high expectations of behaviour, kindness and compassion. Bullying is rare and the tone is calm rather than pressured.

What stops the intensity tipping into hot-housing is breadth. Girls here are expected to be curious across the board, and the co-curricular life, from Amnesty International to astrophysics, signals that results are the floor, not the ceiling. Girls develop a well-developed sense of fairness and social justice, and that shows up in the causes they take on and the societies they run. It is an all-girls environment that is confident and outward-looking rather than cloistered, and the ethos of kindness sits comfortably alongside genuine academic ambition.

NHEHS is a genuine academic heavyweight, and the numbers are unambiguous. At GCSE, 76% of grades were awarded at 9 or 8 (the old A*), a further 15% at grade 7, so 91% of all GCSE grades landed in the 9 to 7 band. These are results that concentrate the whole cohort near the very top of the grade range, not a few star performers pulling up an average.

In a dedicated ranking, the school sits 29th of 3,895 in England for GCSE results, which places it in the top 0.7% and among the highest-performing schools in the country (ranked against all schools in England with published secondary results, state and independent). On the FindMySchool overall measure, which blends results with an inspection score, it ranks 19th of 3,887, and it is first of all schools in Ealing. These are proprietary FindMySchool rankings built from official data.

The picture holds at A-level. In 2024, 26% of entries were graded A* and 65% reached A* or A, comfortably ahead of the England average of around 24% at A*/A; 91% of grades were A* to B against an England figure of roughly 47%. That translates to a ranking of 98th of 2,562 in England for A-level results, the top 3.8% and well above the England average, with an overall position of 84th of 2,561 and, again, first in Ealing. For a school that is selective but not hyper-selective, converting a strong intake into results at this level is a real achievement rather than a foregone conclusion.

Because this is an all-through school, it is worth being clear about what the rankings describe: the GCSE figures relate to the senior school at the end of Year 11, and the A-level figures to the sixth form. The junior school, covering ages 4 to 11, does not sit external league-table assessments, so no comparable primary ranking applies. Parents comparing NHEHS with local grammars and other independents can line the results up side by side using the FindMySchool hub comparison tool.

Teaching is the engine of these results, and it is built on subject expertise. Teachers have strong subject knowledge and plan lessons that meet girls where they are, pushing the most able while supporting those who need it. Pupils make good progress and achieve well in public examinations, and the youngest children are a particular highlight: in the early years, children develop problem-solving and critical thinking skills beyond the norm for their age. Inspectors identified the early years provision as a significant strength of the school, singling out how rapidly the youngest children move towards their learning goals.

The senior curriculum is deliberately broad and rigorous. At sixth form the school offers around 25 A-level subjects, including options that many schools drop, such as Classical Greek, Latin, History of Art, Further Mathematics, Mandarin, German and Philosophy alongside the full slate of sciences and humanities. Enrichment runs deep too: academic symposia, a Classics Masterclass, a Hans Woyda maths team and an Informatics Olympiad group give the most able girls a reason to stretch beyond the syllabus. Thorough quality-assurance processes keep academic and pastoral provision aligned, so teaching is monitored rather than left to chance. The result is a classroom culture that is demanding but not joyless, and one that treats intellectual curiosity as the point rather than a by-product.

The junior school feeds the senior school, so most girls progress internally into Year 7, joined by external entrants who sit the 11+ assessment. Progression into the sixth form is subject to meeting GCSE entry requirements rather than automatic, which keeps the post-16 cohort focused and well matched to the demanding A-level programme.

At 18, destinations are strong. In the 2023/24 leaving cohort of 69 students, 72% progressed to university, with a further 1% into other further education and 16% into employment. The school is a consistent presence at the most competitive universities: across a recent cycle, 26 applications to Oxford and Cambridge yielded four offers, all of which were taken up, split between one at Cambridge and three at Oxford. Medicine, engineering and the sciences are well-trodden routes, supported by a Medical society, regular dissections for aspiring medics and biologists, and a strong maths and computing culture through Python coding, the Pi Club and the Informatics Olympiad. The breadth of A-level options means girls also head off to read languages, classics, history of art and economics, so destinations span the sciences and the humanities rather than clustering in one field.

The sixth form is where the school's academic ambition and its emphasis on independence come together. Girls typically take three or four A-levels from a list of around 25 subjects, choosing from a genuinely wide menu that keeps minority subjects such as Classical Greek, German, Mandarin and History of Art alive. Beyond the timetable, the World Ready Programme, led by Head of Sixth Rodgers Endersby, layers practical life skills onto the academic diet, covering communication, financial literacy and independent living, so leavers are prepared for university life as well as its entrance requirements. Music scholars and other award-holders continue their enrichment through masterclasses, cultural trips, challenges and puzzles.

The sixth form has its own home on site, housed in a distinctive protected 1970s building that gives older students an identity separate from the main school. Entry is open to the school's own Year 11 students and to external candidates alike, with places offered on the basis of GCSE performance and subject suitability rather than a fixed catchment. For girls who thrive on choice and independence, it is a well-resourced and academically serious two years.

NHEHS is selective and admits at four main points: Reception at 4+, Year 3 at 7+, Year 7 at 11+, and the sixth form at 16+. The largest senior intake is at 11+, where candidates sit a 100-minute online Consortium test assessing creative thinking, analysis and problem-solving, followed by interviews. For 2026 entry the registration deadline is 6 November 2026, and families should confirm current dates directly with the school as these shift each year.

As an independent school, entry is by assessment rather than by home address, so there is no catchment or distance rule to navigate. That said, the school draws heavily from Ealing, Chiswick, Hammersmith, Shepherd's Bush, Notting Hill and Holland Park, and out towards Harrow, Richmond and Kew, and the coach network is built around that map. Sixth-form entry is open to external candidates as well as the school's own Year 11 students, with places offered on the basis of GCSE performance and subject suitability. Prospective families can use the FindMySchool saved-schools shortlist to line NHEHS up against other west London independents and grammars while they weigh options.

Competition for places is real, particularly at 11+, and the assessment rewards genuine intellectual curiosity rather than heavy tutoring. Means-tested bursary applicants apply at Year 7 and Year 12 entry, so families considering financial assistance should plan around those two gateways rather than assuming aid can be arranged at any stage.

Pastoral care is a clear strength and it is closely stitched to the school's values. Leaders promote kindness and compassion through assemblies and through supportive day-to-day pastoral care, and girls are well looked after by staff who prioritise their wellbeing. Behaviour expectations are high and pupils respond to them; bullying is rare, and safeguarding and pastoral leaders work closely together so that concerns are picked up early. The values of fairness and social justice are not just talked about: they show up in the strength of clubs like Amnesty International and the LGBTQ+ society, and in the causes girls choose to champion.

Safeguarding is effective. Staff are well trained and alert, and policies are clear and meet statutory guidance. Learning support is handled by a SENCo-led team, largely through one-to-one help, with a meaningful minority of girls receiving some form of additional support and a small number on formal plans. For most families the reassuring headline is simple: this is a warm, well-run environment where academic pressure is managed rather than amplified, and where the tone is set by care as much as by ambition.

For a school this academic, the co-curricular offer is unusually deep, and it rests on genuinely good facilities. Music is a defining pillar. Girls can play in a Symphony Orchestra, a Chamber Orchestra and a Session Orchestra, sing in the Chamber Choir or Lower School Chamber Choir, or join a Jazz Band, Rock Band, Flute Ensemble or Bassoon Quartet. Smaller ensembles range from piano duos and trios to a conducting group and a film-music group. Performance is constant, from Teatime Concerts to termly recitals, and the setting supports it: a dedicated Recital Hall and a Recording Studio with music-tech facilities sit alongside the main teaching spaces.

Drama is similarly serious. The 360 Drama Studio gives students direct access to technical staging, lighting, set design and make-up, while a 250-seat auditorium hosts main-house productions. Backstage Pass, a three-tier technical-theatre programme, trains the girls who run lighting and sound, and LAMDA courses formalise the performance side for those who want graded qualifications. This is drama that takes the craft behind the curtain as seriously as the stage.

Sport is broad and well resourced. A 25-metre swimming pool supports competitive swimming and water polo, a four-court astro pitch keeps hockey and netball fixtures running, and a 10-metre-high sports hall houses four trampolines for a strong trampolining programme. Beyond the mainstream of netball, hockey, football and cricket, girls can try fencing, kickboxing, taekwondo, indoor rowing, gymnastics, yoga, badminton, dance and strength and conditioning, and sports scholarships are offered in athletics, netball, cross country, swimming, cricket, tennis, hockey and water polo.

The intellectual and enterprise clubs are where the school's character really shows. Alongside Debating and a Medical society, girls run a Dissection club, an Astrophysics group, a Pi Club, Python coding and Classics Masterclass; there is a Tycoon enterprise competition and an Economics society for the commercially minded, plus quirkier offerings such as Coup Club, Bridge, Horrible Histories, a German Society and Ealing Teen Read. Model-style politics comes through the European Parliament Ambassador School scheme, and the Duke of Edinburgh's Award runs at Bronze, Silver and Gold. It is a programme designed to make curiosity a habit rather than a timetabled subject.

The school's alumnae give a sense of where that habit can lead: actress Emily Watson, historian and broadcaster Bettany Hughes, presenters Konnie Huq and Angellica Bell, Labour MP Rupa Huq, and Hannah Reid of London Grammar all passed through the school.

Fees are charged per term and sit at the higher end for west London. For 2026/27, day fees are £7,508 per term for Reception to Year 2, £7,606 per term for Years 3 to 6, and £9,808 per term for Years 7 to 13, which works out at roughly £29,400 a year for the senior school and sixth form on a three-term basis. Lunch is charged separately, and there is a one-off registration fee of £210 and an acceptance deposit of £2,400. A sibling discount of 20% applies to a third and any subsequent child.

Financial support is a real part of the picture. Means-tested bursaries are available for entry at Year 7 and Year 12, and can substantially reduce fees for families who qualify. Scholarships are merit-based and separate from bursaries: academic and music scholarships at 11+ are typically worth 10 to 20% of fees, sports scholarships are offered across eight named sports, and sixth-form scholarships of 5 to 10% for two years span academic, music, sport, drama, science and art. Music scholars join an enrichment programme of masterclasses and cultural trips. Families should treat the scholarship as recognition and the bursary as the route to affordability, and apply for both where relevant.

The estate has been steadily modernised. A new Junior School building, completed in late 2023, won a gold medal for a green school building and gives the youngest pupils a purpose-built home. The senior school is organised around a three-storey light-filled atrium and a central courtyard, with the sixth form housed in a distinctive protected 1970s building that gives older students their own identity on site. Alongside the pool, sports hall and performance spaces, there is a glass-fronted studio and a 3D theatre studio, so the creative and physical facilities match the academic ambition. For a single-site London day school, that breadth of specialist space, from a recording studio to a competition-sized pool, is a genuine asset and one of the reasons the co-curricular offer can be so ambitious.

The school runs as a single-site day school in central Ealing, a short walk from Ealing Broadway. There is no boarding. Getting there is well supported: a Vectare coach network runs three routes with more than 25 stops, linking Central London, Harrow, and Richmond and Kew, and the school is reachable via five National Rail stations and ten Underground stations, with Ealing Broadway about a ten-minute walk away. Bike racks and scooter storage are provided at both the senior and junior schools for local families. Parents wanting to gauge journeys from home can map the coach routes and rail links before applying; the school publishes current timetables and open-event dates on its website.

Cost is the main barrier. Senior day fees of around £29,400 a year, before lunches and extras, put NHEHS out of reach for many families. The bursary and scholarship programme genuinely helps, but bursaries are concentrated at Year 7 and Year 12 entry, so plan applications around those points.

Entry is competitive and selective. The 11+ is the busiest gate, and the assessment favours genuine reasoning over rote preparation. Families should treat a place as far from guaranteed and consider back-up options in parallel.

PSHE in the lower senior years is a work in progress. Personal, social, health and economic education across Years 7 to 11 has been delivered inconsistently, with recent improvements not yet fully embedded and some lessons failing to engage. It is a targeted, honest caveat in an otherwise very strong 2025 report, and one the school is already addressing.

It is a single-sex, single-site day school. For families who want co-education, boarding, or sprawling green campuses, the model will not fit; NHEHS is unapologetically an urban girls' day school.

Notting Hill & Ealing High School is a top-tier girls' school that turns a selective intake into some of the strongest GCSE and A-level results in England, first in Ealing on both counts, while keeping music, drama, sport and intellectual clubs at the centre of school life rather than the margins. Teaching is expert, pastoral care is genuinely caring, and the early years and sixth form are particular strengths. The obvious caveats are cost and competition for places, plus a single flagged area, PSHE delivery in Years 7 to 11, that the school is already working on. It is best suited to academically curious girls, and to families who want serious results delivered in a warm, values-driven, all-girls day school in west London, and who can meet the fees or secure a bursary. For those families, it is about as strong a package as the borough offers.