Greenford's schools are one of the best reasons to buy here. Primary maths results are strong across the town. The two secondaries post a high exam average between them. Nearly every school in the borough that inspectors have graded is good or outstanding. Families who moved here for the Central line tend to find the schools are the bigger win.
The ten state primaries in the area average about 107 in Key Stage 2 maths, the end-of-primary tests set by the Department for Education. They include Ravenor Primary School, next to the town's largest park, and Horsenden Primary School, named after the hill on Greenford's eastern edge. Oldfield Primary School takes its name from the same patch of North Greenford where William Perkin made the first aniline dye in 1856. The other primaries are spread through the residential streets, so for most families the walk to a primary is a short one.
There are two state secondaries in the area, The Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School and William Perkin Church of England High School, and their pupils average about 60 on Attainment 8. That is the government's score across a pupil's best eight exam subjects. With only two secondaries to choose from, most families end up planning around both of them, and the choice gets made long before Year 6.
Across Ealing, Ofsted rates 36 of its 39 graded schools good or outstanding, which is nearly all of them. Fourteen are outstanding, three require improvement and none is inadequate. Some settings have not been graded yet and are left out of those counts. The figures cover the whole borough, so they describe the schools a Greenford family competes for along with everyone else in Ealing.
Ealing Council allocates places using its published admissions rules, which weigh things like distance and siblings, so buying near Ravenor or Oldfield does not by itself get a child in. The two faith secondaries also have their own admission criteria, set separately from the council's distance rules. Ealing publishes how each school filled last year's places, and that is worth reading before you commit to a street because a school's name appears in the particulars. Living close to a school and being offered a place there are two separate outcomes.
The Perivale Study Centre has closed, so it is no longer an option.
The schools are among Greenford's real strengths. Strong primaries and two capable secondaries mean a family can choose this town on the schools alone.