Merstham Park School Review 2026: A young, growing Surrey secondary with a clear values-led culture

Merstham Park School is a relatively new 11-16 secondary in Merstham, Redhill, established in 2018 and part of the GLF Schools multi-academy trust. The school moved into its new buildings in September 2022, a milestone that matters for families because it tends to bring greater stability in routines, space, and specialist rooms as cohorts grow.

The school is led by Mr Cullum Mitchell (Head of School). Its most recent published inspection outcome is Good, with Good judgments across each graded area, following an inspection in October 2022 (report published January 2023).

This is a state school with no tuition fees. Day-to-day costs still exist, particularly around uniform, trips, and lunch, and families will want to understand what is essential versus optional early on. One practical detail that helps budgeting is that the school has previously stated a lunch price of £2.40 per day (£12 per week).

Merstham Park’s identity is strongly values-driven. The language used consistently across published school materials centres on inclusion, collaboration, resilience, respect, and success, and it is positioned as a community-focused school rather than a selective or niche provider. For many families, that is the key cultural signal, expectations are explicit, behaviour is framed as part of learning, and pupils are encouraged to see themselves as active contributors to the community.

There is also a “new school” dynamic that can suit some children very well. With the school founded in 2018, it has been building systems, staffing, and traditions in real time, rather than inheriting decades of established routines. That often creates opportunities for pupils to step into responsibility earlier, because leadership roles, student voice structures, and clubs tend to expand as the school grows.

The move into the new building in September 2022 is also a meaningful part of the story. Newer facilities can reduce some of the friction families associate with overcrowded corridors, insufficient specialist rooms, or limited social space at break. It does not automatically mean “better”, but it often enables a school to deliver what it intends, more consistently.

Merstham Park School’s GCSE performance indicators sit close to England averages in several key measures, with one notable caution around overall progress.

Ranked 2,073rd in England and 3rd in Redhill for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), performance is in line with the middle 35% of schools in England (25th to 60th percentile).

Attainment 8 is 45.9, which is broadly in line with the England average figure shown alongside it. Progress 8 is -0.09, indicating pupils make slightly below average progress from their starting points, on average. EBacc average point score is 4.03 (England average shown as 4.08), and 13.5% of pupils achieved grades 5 or above in the EBacc measure recorded here.

What that means for parents: the school’s headline attainment is broadly typical in England terms, but the progress figure suggests that, for some pupils, the learning journey is not yet as consistently strong as it needs to be across all subjects and cohorts. For many families, the practical implication is to look beyond the headline “Good” and ask sharper questions at open events, particularly about curriculum sequencing, how teachers check understanding, and what support looks like if a child falls behind.

A final contextual point: Merstham Park is a growing school with expanding cohorts, and early-year performance data in newer schools can be more sensitive to small shifts in staffing, curriculum design, and cohort composition than in long-established secondaries. It is sensible to ask the school how it is using assessment information and subject reviews to improve consistency.

The curriculum has been described as ambitious, broad, and balanced, with a strong emphasis on building knowledge and vocabulary over time. In practical terms, this suggests a fairly traditional academic spine, underpinned by clear sequencing, alongside a deliberate effort to include all pupils, including those with special educational needs and or disabilities, in the full curriculum offer.

A useful window into the intended learning experience is provided by the school’s published curriculum materials for younger year groups. These set out subject coverage across areas including art, drama, English, modern foreign languages, food technology, computing, mathematics, music, physical education, science, textiles, and resistant materials, alongside a dedicated learner session. The implication for families is that Merstham Park aims to keep breadth at Key Stage 3, which matters for pupils who need time to discover strengths before GCSE options narrow.

Strengths in classroom delivery, as described in formal reporting, include teachers presenting information clearly and using assessment and retrieval approaches effectively in several subjects. The same material points to an area for development where curriculum sequencing is less coherent in some subjects, which can make it harder for pupils to connect new learning to prior knowledge. In parent terms, this often shows up as unevenness between departments, with some subjects feeling tightly structured and others feeling less cumulative.

Reading is treated as a whole-school priority, with systems in place to support pupils who are not yet reading fluently, and an emphasis on subject-specific terminology in lessons. This is a practical strength for pupils who arrive in Year 7 with weaker literacy, because secondary learning increasingly depends on decoding complex texts and writing accurately in every subject.

As an 11-16 school, Merstham Park’s main transition point is after Year 11. The school’s stated approach places careers education and guidance across Years 7 to 11, including weekly careers-focused learning, enrichment mornings, and engagement with local colleges and universities to raise aspirations.

The implication is a post-16 pathway culture that is intended to be planned rather than reactive. For families, the best question to ask is how that guidance is personalised, for example, what support looks like for pupils considering a sixth form route, a further education college, or technical pathways.

Because Merstham Park is part of a multi-academy trust and is still in a growth phase, it is also sensible to ask how the school supports GCSE choices and post-16 destinations for pupils with specific goals, including apprenticeships, specialist college courses, or competitive sixth form entry requirements.

Admissions for Year 7 entry are coordinated through Surrey County Council’s secondary admissions process, with the school’s admission arrangements set out under GLF Schools as the admissions authority. For September 2026 entry, Surrey’s on-time application window opened on 1 September 2025 and closed on 31 October 2025. Offer notifications for secondary places are sent on 1 March, or the next working day when 1 March falls on a weekend; for 2026 entry that means offers on Monday 2 March 2026.

Demand is a central feature of the admissions picture. In the most recent admissions dataset provided here for Year 7, Merstham Park School was oversubscribed, receiving 392 applications for 182 offers, which equates to 2.15 applications per place.

For parents, the implication is straightforward: treat Merstham Park as a school where preference strategy matters. If you would be genuinely happy with a place, it is usually sensible to rank it accordingly, and to build a realistic set of alternatives in case distance and prioritisation criteria do not fall your way in a particular year.

The school’s Published Admission Number (PAN) for September 2026 entry is 180. When oversubscribed, the admissions policy prioritises, in order: looked after and previously looked after children; siblings; designated feeder school pupils (Furzefield Primary School, Lime Tree Primary School, and Merstham Park Primary School); children of staff; then all other children, ordered by straight-line distance to the nearest official school gate.

If you are making a proximity-based choice, it is worth using FindMySchool’s Map Search to check your precise distance to the school gate and to stress-test your assumptions against competitive local patterns.

The school’s stated intent places wellbeing and safety as a central leadership priority, alongside academic ambition, with a firm stance on bullying. Pastoral support is described as balancing rewards with sanctions, with clear expectations that pupils understand. The practical effect, when well implemented, is a calmer learning environment and fewer “grey areas” in behaviour management, which is particularly important for pupils who are anxious about the transition into Year 7.

A specific transition support detail that will matter to many families is the emphasis on structured routines early in the day, including Learning Mentor time, and the availability of Study Space support before and after school in some form (as referenced in transition materials). For pupils who need help organising homework or who benefit from a quieter place to work, this kind of provision can make a meaningful difference.

The safeguarding statement in the most recent published inspection material is positive: safeguarding arrangements were confirmed as effective, with trained safeguarding staff and clear reporting systems.

A growing school’s extracurricular life often reveals a lot about its priorities. Merstham Park’s published materials point to structured time for enrichment at the end of the school day, running to 16.15, which is helpful for working families and for pupils who benefit from being “kept busy” in a supervised setting.

Two concrete examples of named, routine provision appear in transition documentation. HW Club is referenced both at the start of the day and after lessons, and it sits alongside scheduled Enrichment Activities in that final hour. For pupils who find homework difficult to manage at home, this can provide structure, adult presence, and a consistent expectation of completion. The implication is less conflict at home, and a stronger sense of “school is where learning happens”, particularly in Year 7 and Year 8.

The school also runs a Summer School as part of transition arrangements, aimed at helping new Year 7 pupils meet peers and settle before September. This tends to suit pupils who are socially anxious or who are moving from smaller primary schools, because it reduces the number of “first day” unknowns.

Facilities are part of extracurricular credibility as well as curriculum delivery. In addition to the new school buildings opened in September 2022, local public documentation indicates a proposed outdoor 3G pitch project for Merstham Park School, with planning considerations including mitigation of potential noise impact on nearby homes. If delivered as intended, that kind of facility typically strengthens PE, fixtures, and after-school sport, and can also expand community use outside core hours.

Published transition information describes gates opening at 08.15, with Learning Mentor time starting at 08.45, and the formal day extending to 16.15 when enrichment activities run. That later finish may be a benefit for families who need after-school structure, though it can be tiring for pupils who struggle with long days, so it is worth asking how often enrichment is expected versus optional.

Lunch cost has previously been stated as £2.40 per day, which is a useful baseline for budgeting (families should still check the current position directly with the school).

For travel, the nearest rail station for the area is commonly referenced as Merstham. Families who drive will want to ask about drop-off patterns and any managed traffic arrangements, because new-build schools can still have tight surrounding roads at peak times.

• Academic progress is slightly below average. Progress 8 is -0.09, which suggests some pupils are not making as much progress as they could from their starting points. Families may want to ask what has changed since the latest published inspection and how consistency between subjects is being improved.

• Competition for places is real. With 392 applications and 182 offers in the most recent Year 7 admissions dataset here, demand outstripped supply. Preference strategy and realistic alternatives matter.

• A young school can feel different. Being founded in 2018 means traditions, enrichment breadth, and leadership structures are still developing. Some pupils enjoy being part of that growth; others prefer the settled feel of a long-established secondary.

• The day can be long. An 08.15 opening and enrichment to 16.15 can be a strength, but it may not suit every child, especially those who need more downtime after lessons.

Merstham Park School presents as a clear, structured, values-led 11-16 secondary that has stabilised into its permanent site and is building breadth as it grows. Its GCSE performance sits broadly in line with the middle of schools in England, with slightly below average progress suggesting the next stage of improvement is about consistency and impact rather than ambition.

It suits families who want a local community school with explicit expectations, structured transition support, and supervised enrichment opportunities that extend the day. Admission is the obstacle; the day-to-day experience is likely to be clearest for families who ask detailed questions about subject consistency, support for weaker readers, and how enrichment is organised for different year groups.