It’s official: the best school in Britain for 2026/27 is in London

Secondary school is a major part of everyone’s life. It may only span seven years, but it’s defining: in that period you grow from pre-teen to a near fully-fledged adult. So, choosing what school to send your own kid to can be a daunting prospect.  Luckily, there are guides out there that can help you figure out the best place for your child. 

The Times Parent Power Ranking is a huge annual roundup of all of the best state schools, private schools, primary schools, sixth form colleges and grammar schools in the UK. It takes into account things like exam results, performance within a particular specialism, range of extracurricular activities and teaching quality – and it has just released its ranking for 2026. 

So, according to the Times the greatest school in the country overall for 2026 is all-boys private school St Paul’s School in Barnes. 

The 500-year-old school charges nearly £12,000 for day pupils and nearly £18,000 for boarding. Its ex-pupils include former chancellor of the exchequer George Osborne and television presenter Dan Snow.

At A-Level, 98 percent of St Paul’s results were A*-B and at GCSE, 97.7 percent were graded 9-7. On top of academics, the Times said that St Paul’s provides nearly 100 societies, clubs and activities for its students, including pottery, cookery, an AI society and 20 different sports. It also revealed that its corridors are ‘lined with whiteboards containing maths puzzles to be solved by anyone who picks up the pen’. 

An inspection of St Paul’s reported: ‘Pupils excel in their academic and intellectual development, and achieve exceptional standards in examinations, sport and performing arts. They have outstanding attitudes to their learning and respond responsibly to the high level of autonomy they are provided.

‘Pupils grow into confident young adults as a result of this, and treat one another with exemplary tolerance and mutual respect […] They take full advantage of and achieve high standards in the excellent programme of extracurricular activities.’

For the fourth year in a row London had more high-ranked schools than anywhere else in the country, with seven schools in the top ten. It’s also home the Britain’s best state school: Queen Elizabeth’s School in Barnet.

Find the latest full Times Parent Power Guide here.

ICYMI: The 10 best primary schools in London for 2026, according to the Telegraph. 

Plus: The posh London area that is officially the best place in England for state schools.