Cowbridge Comprehensive School has been officially named the best in Wales. The education establishment topped the annual Sunday Times Parent Power Guide by their exam results in summer, 2024.
Parents can also compare schools in towns, local authorities and nationally with links to information such as inspection reports, which are routinely posted online by Estyn. The 'Parent Power' guide compares state and independent secondaries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Schools are ranked by performance at A-level and GCSE in summer, 2024, and IGCSEs sat in independent schools. If a school does not appear on the league table the publishers say "it is most likely because it did not respond to requests for its A-level and GCSE results, and the results could not be found in the public domain". You can get more story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.
The full list of winners in Wales, according to the report:
State Secondary School of the Year in Wales 2025 & State Secondary School of the Year in Wales for Academic Excellence 2025: Cowbridge School, Vale of Glamorgan
Welsh Independent Secondary School of the Year 2025: The Cathedral School, Llandaff
Welsh Independent Secondary School of the Year for Academic Excellence 2025: Cardiff Sixth Form College
Top state secondary schools in Wales
National rank |
National rank | Last year’s rank | |
1 | Cowbridge School | 133= | 131 |
2 | Olchfa School, Swansea | 202= | 181= |
3 | Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Bro Myrddin, Caerfyrddin | 221 | 198 |
4 | Crickhowell High School | 265 | - |
5 | Ysgol Bro Preseli, Sir Benfro | 281 | - |
6 | Ysgol Eirias, Colwyn Bay | 298 | 278 |
7 | Bishop Vaughan Catholic School, Swansea | 300 | - |
8 | Llanidloes High School | 336= | - |
Top independent secondary schools in Wales
National rank |
National rank | Last year’s rank | |
1 | Cardiff Sixth Form College | 37 | 13 |
2 | St John's College, Cardiff | 51= | 50 |
3 | St Michael's School, Llanelli | 62 | 28 |
4 | The Cathedral School, Llandaff | 63 | 77 |
5 | Westbourne School, Penarth | 84 | - |
6 | Howell's School, Llandaff GDST, Cardiff | 133= | 91 |
7 | Ruthin School | 171 | - |
8 | St Gerard's School Trust, Bangor | 200= | - |
9 | Rougemont School, Newport | 238= | 132 |
10 | Christ College Brecon | 251= | 286 |
The guide, which describes itself as "widely acknowledged as the most authoritative survey of the country’s top schools" will be published online at 7am on Friday, December 6, and available in print in a 28-page supplement on Sunday, December 8.
It includes a searchable national database of over 2,000 schools by name, local authority, town and postcode. As well as an assessment of all academic results on a school-by-school basis, Parent Power enables parents to compare the performance of a given school with other schools in the same town, local authority or nationally, if they're on the list.
The Parent Power guide also features:
Tips on how to apply for a scholarship to a top private school
Inside the UK’s top maths school that pupils call “Disneyland” plus a quiz
An investigation into smartphones and schools
An interview with the oldest teacher in Britain, aged 82
Is a private education worth it? How it all adds up
23 questions that every parent should ask to choose the right school for their child
The homework cheats from Google Lens to ChatGPT
Frank Cottrell-Boyce, the children’s laureate, offers expert advice on fostering a love of reading in children, and the books to read from Reception to Year 3
One anonymous parent confesses all about just how they nabbed a primary school place
No schools in Wales make it on to the Parent Power national awards which are as follows:
State Secondary School of the Year: King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls, Birmingham
State Secondary School of the Year for Academic Excellence: Henrietta Barnett School, London
Comprehensive School of the Year: Impington Village College, Cambridgeshire
Joint State Secondary School of the Year for A-levels: Queen Elizabeth’s School, Barnet and Henrietta Barnett School, London
State Secondary School of the Year for GCSEs: Henrietta Barnett School, London
International Baccalaureate State School of the Year: Ashcroft Technology Academy, London
Sixth Form College of the Year & Sixth Form College of the Year for Academic Excellence: King’s Maths School, London
State Faith Secondary School of the Year: Tauheedul Islam Girls’ High School and Sixth Form College, Blackburn
State 11-16 Secondary School of the Year: Sawston Village College, Cambridgeshire
2025 Parent Power National Awards (independent secondary schools)
Independent School of the Year: Reigate Grammar School, Surrey
Independent School of the Year for Academic Excellence: St Paul’s Girls’ School, London
Independent Boarding School of the Year & School of the Year for A-levels: Brighton College, East Sussex
Independent International Baccalaureate School of the Year: King’s College School, London
Independent School of the Year for GCSEs: Westminster School, London
Independent 11-16 Secondary School of the Year: Palmers Green High School, London
Helen Davies, editor of Parent Power, said: “The educational landscape is challenging – teacher shortages, rising student mental health issues and special educational needs and the Vat hike – but there is also so much to celebrate from the hard work of passionate and committed teachers who are finding ever more innovative and impactful ways to boost their students and give them the very best start in life.
“As well as celebrating the academic excellence of the top schools it is fantastic to see how they are shaping their students to be ready for the 21st century."
thetimes.com/best-schools-league-table
