Harris Academy Merton
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 1,371 pupils
92% stayed in education · Attainment 8 53.7
Community school
Ricards Lodge High School
- Pupils on roll
- 1,534of 1,500 places
- Free school meals
- 26.9%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 222
- Ofsted
- School remains Outstanding, 14 September 2023Read the Ofsted report
What the data says
Of the 219 pupils who finished Year 11 at Ricards Lodge High School in 2023, 68% stayed on in Ricards Lodge High School’s own sixth form (Merton average 60%), 15% went to a further education college and none started an apprenticeship.
Among the 104 students who left the sixth form in 2023, 76% went to university (Merton 70%, England 37%), and 21% of level 3 students progressed to one of the most selective universities, against 19% nationally.
GCSE results in 2025 were well above the national picture: Attainment 8 of 54.2 against 46.1 across England and 52.3 in Merton, with 55% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Religious Studies is unusually popular at GCSE: 98% of the year group took it, against 31% of pupils across England.
Where pupils went after Year 11
Destinations of the 2023 Year 11 leavers, measured the following year: the share in a sustained place for at least two terms. Compared with all state-funded schools in Merton and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Ricards Lodge High School | Merton | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 219 | 1,711 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 97% | 93% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 96% | 92% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 68% | 60% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 11% | 6% | 13% |
| — further education college | 15% | 23% | 37% |
| — other education | 1% | 3% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 0% | 1% | 3% |
| Employment | 1% | 1% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 2% | 4% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 1% | 3% | 3% |
Where students went after sixth form
Destinations of students who finished 16–18 study in 2023, measured the following year.
University (higher education)Further educationOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Ricards Lodge High School | Merton | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students in the cohort | 104 | 774 | 541,441 |
| Any sustained destination | 88% | 90% | 79% |
| University (higher education) | 76% | 70% | 37% |
| — most selective universities (top third), of level 3 students | 21% | 25% | 19% |
| Further education | 1% | 2% | 5% |
| Apprenticeship | 2% | 4% | 7% |
| Employment | 10% | 14% | 28% |
| No sustained destination | 6% | 6% | 16% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | Ricards Lodge High School | Merton | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 54.2 | 52.3 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 55% | 56% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 78% | 74% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 68% | 58% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 4.90 | 4.84 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 28% | 34% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 47.7 | 45.3 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 56.8 | 55.9 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 42% | 31% | 19% |
Progress 8 is not available for 2025 and 2026: these cohorts had no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020 and 2021, so there is no baseline. Attainment 8 shows results without taking pupils’ starting points into account.
Subjects taken at GCSE
Entries in 2025 as a share of the Year 11 cohort, and the share of entries graded 7–9 and 4–9, compared with all entries in England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England | Grades 7–9 | England | Grades 4–9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 222 | 100% | 88% | 24% | 22% | 79% |
| English Language | 221 | 100% | 89% | 25% | 20% | 86% |
| English Literature | 219 | 99% | 86% | 29% | 21% | 86% |
| Religious Studies | 217 | 98% | 31% | 34% | 32% | 81% |
| Biology | 134 | 60% | 23% | 26% | 45% | 87% |
| Physics | 134 | 60% | 23% | 23% | 46% | 87% |
| Chemistry | 134 | 60% | 23% | 30% | 47% | 85% |
| History | 118 | 53% | 41% | 38% | 26% | 79% |
| Geography | 111 | 50% | 41% | 29% | 25% | 68% |
| Combined Science | 86 | 39% | 65% | 2% | 9% | 44% |
| Business Studies | 81 | 36% | 18% | 22% | 20% | 68% |
| French | 76 | 34% | 18% | 29% | 29% | 80% |
| Spanish | 64 | 29% | 19% | 28% | 27% | 73% |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 48 | 22% | 8% | 19% | 21% | 77% |
| Art and Design | 45 | 20% | 7% | 18% | 24% | 87% |
| Design and Technology | 22 | 10% | 11% | 45% | 23% | 86% |
| Music | 21 | 9% | 5% | 43% | 33% | 90% |
| Computer Science | 16 | 7% | 13% | 6% | 30% | 88% |
| Drama | 12 | 5% | 7% | 50% | 27% | 100% |
| Photography | 10 | 5% | 6% | 0% | 19% | 70% |
| Textiles | 8 | 4% | 2% | 0% | 27% | 75% |
| Film Studies | 6 | 3% | 1% | 83% | 20% | 100% |
| Polish | 4 | 2% | 1% | — | 84% | — |
| Chinese | 3 | 1% | 1% | — | 75% | — |
| Portuguese | 3 | 1% | 0% | — | 50% | — |
| Turkish | 3 | 1% | 0% | — | 71% | — |
| German | 3 | 1% | 5% | — | 33% | — |
| Arabic | 2 | 1% | 1% | — | 47% | — |
| Urdu | 2 | 1% | 1% | — | 42% | — |
| Statistics | 1 | 0% | 5% | — | 20% | — |
| Citizenship Studies | 1 | 0% | 3% | — | 19% | — |
| Russian | 1 | 0% | 0% | — | 87% | — |
| Japanese | 1 | 0% | 0% | — | 53% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sports Studies | 56 | 48% | — |
| Dance: General | 44 | 38% | — |
| Multimedia | 38 | 33% | — |
| Speech and Drama | 37 | 32% | — |
| Computer Appreciation / Introduction | 28 | 24% | — |
A levels and other level 3 courses
| Measure | Ricards Lodge High School | Merton | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students at the end of 16–18 study | 308 | — | — |
| — of whom A level students | 116 | 728 | 261,341 |
| Average A level grade | B- | B- | B- |
| Average points per A level entry | 35.11 | 35.90 | 35.00 |
| Average grade, best 3 A levels | B- | B- | B- |
| AAB or better with two facilitating subjects | 15% | 19% | 18% |
| Average grade, applied general courses | — | — | — |
| Average grade, T levels | — | — | — |
A level subjects
Entries as a share of A level students, compared with the share across England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sociology | 33 | 28% | 13% |
| Mathematics | 28 | 24% | 31% |
| Psychology | 27 | 23% | 23% |
| Biology | 26 | 22% | 20% |
| English Literature | 26 | 22% | 11% |
| Chemistry | 22 | 19% | 17% |
| History | 18 | 16% | 13% |
| Geography | 18 | 16% | 10% |
| Philosophy | 12 | 10% | 1% |
| Physics | 10 | 9% | 12% |
| Art and Design | 9 | 8% | 1% |
| 3D Design | 6 | 5% | 1% |
| Film Studies | 6 | 5% | 2% |
| Politics | 6 | 5% | 6% |
| French | — | — | 1% |
| Computer Science | — | — | 5% |
| Russian | — | — | 0% |
| Business Studies | — | — | 13% |
| Further Mathematics | — | — | 5% |
| Textiles | — | — | 1% |
| Economics | — | — | 13% |
| Spanish | — | — | 2% |
| Drama | — | — | 2% |
Applied, technical and other level 3 courses
| Subject | Qualification | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Study Skills | Extended Project (Diploma) | 31 | 27% | — |
| Psychology | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 26 | 22% | — |
| Health Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 18 | 16% | — |
| Law / Legal Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 16 | 14% | — |
| Applied Sciences | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 13 | 11% | — |
| Art and Design | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 12 | 10% | — |
| Speech and Drama | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 8 | 7% | — |
| Film / Video / Television Production | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 7 | 6% | — |
| Sports Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | — | — | — |
| Business Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | — | — | — |
| Music performance: Group | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | — | — | — |
Where Ricards Lodge High School is
Other secondary schools in Merton are shown for comparison; darker blue means more Year 11 leavers stayed in education. The last distance at which this school offered places is not yet on file — it comes from Merton’s allocation statistics.
Other secondary schools in Merton
Harris Academy Morden
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 873 pupils
85% stayed in education · Attainment 8 46.6
Harris Academy Wimbledon
Free schools · sixth form · 1,073 pupils
93% stayed in education · Attainment 8 58.3
Raynes Park High School
Community school · sixth form · 1,134 pupils
84% stayed in education · Attainment 8 45.3
Rutlish School
Voluntary controlled school · sixth form · 1,471 pupils
95% stayed in education · Attainment 8 60.5
St Mark's Church of England Academy
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 983 pupils
89% stayed in education · Attainment 8 46.1
Sources: Department for Education school and college performance tables 2024/2025 (Key Stage 4 and 16–18 results, subject entries, destination measures for 2023 leavers); Get Information About Schools register as at 19 September 2026; Ofsted management information as at 31 August 2026. Small numbers are suppressed by DfE and shown as “—”. How to read these figures.