Hornsey's schools are very good, and the borough around them is about as reliable as school inspection gets. Almost every graded school has been rated good or better. Close to half are outstanding. None has been rated inadequate. The worry here is getting a place, because the quality takes care of itself.
Ofsted has graded 36 schools across Haringey, and 35 of them are good or better, which leaves almost no room for the weak option parents usually lie awake about. Sixteen are outstanding, 19 are good, one requires improvement and none is inadequate. Another 37 settings across the borough have no published grade yet, which tells you nothing about them in either direction.
The names closer to home are a fair sample. Hornsey School for Girls carries the district's name, which is helpful for the girls and of no use whatsoever to anyone with a son. Highgate Wood Secondary School and Greig City Academy are the other secondaries serving the area. At primary level, Campsbourne Infant and Junior schools and St Mary's CofE Primary School are among the nearest, with Rokesly's infant and junior schools a short way off and several more within reach. Places at every one of them are given out under Haringey Council's published admissions rules, so buying the flat that overlooks the playground secures a view of the playground and nothing more, and a church school such as St Mary's may weigh faith criteria as well. Look up the council's admissions criteria for the specific school, including how far from the gate last year's offers reached, before deciding which street to pay for.
Getting there is short. The Department for Transport's modelled journey times, which date from 2019, put the nearest primary school about six minutes' walk from a typical home and the nearest secondary about 11 minutes away on foot. Those walking times will have held up better than the bus timings from the same year.
With 35 of 36 graded schools in Haringey rated good or better, schools are the part of Hornsey where a parent can relax and save the worry for the asking price. In a district that makes buyers pay heavily for almost everything else, the schools are one of its real strengths.