Waldegrave School converted to academy status in 2012, having previously been part of the Richmond upon Thames LEA.

As with other schools, latest exam results and related data are published in the Department for Education's national tables.

[4] In 2010 Waldegrave was named the top state secondary school, without a sixth form, in the country, by The Times Parent Power and again in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015.

[citation needed] In 2008, Waldegrave was reported to have received a higher proportion of fraudulent applications than for other secondary schools in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames.

Its name commemorates Frances Lady Waldegrave, a former local resident of Strawberry Hill House.

The school was also featured in a short section of Before I go to Sleep (2014) starring Nicole Kidman and Colin Firth.