Best Private Schools in Yorkshire: A Level Results Ranked

Among the best private schools in Yorkshire on A level results, Sheffield High School ranks first with an average point score of 48.47 per entry, followed by The Grammar School At Leeds on 47.08, Birkdale School on 44.09 and Bradford Grammar School on 44.07. In all, 29 schools are ranked on a single measure, the average point score per A level entry in the Department for Education's 16 to 18 performance tables, where A* scores 60, A scores 50, B scores 40 and C scores 30.

The grade beside each figure is the DfE's fine-grade expression of that average, and the students column gives the number of A level students behind it, which matters when a figure rests on a small group. Schools on the same figure share a rank, shown with an equals sign.

Which private schools in Yorkshire have the best A level results?

The figures run from 48.47 at Sheffield High School (grade A) down to 13.13 at Al-Mahad Al-Islami (grade E+), with Sheffield High School and The Grammar School At Leeds (47.08, grade A-) ahead of every other school. Ranks 3 to 8 all carry a B+ and sit close together, from Birkdale School on 44.09 and Bradford Grammar School on 44.07, through Hymers College and St Peter's School 2-18 both on 43.57 at joint fifth, to Queen Elizabeth Grammar School on 42.88 and Bootham School on 42.83. A second cluster at grade B runs from Hill House School on 38.99 through Wakefield Girls' High School on 38.95 and The Mount School (York) on 38.86 to Jaamiatul Imaam Muhammad Zakaria on 38.84.

Girls' schools appear at both ends of the table: Sheffield High School is first, Wakefield Girls' High School is 11th and Jaamiatul Imaam Muhammad Zakaria is 13th, whilst Al-Mahad Al-Islami is 29th on 13.13. The two boys' schools, Eternal Light on 24.73 and Darul Uloom Dawatul Imaan on 17.78, rank 27th and 28th, and co-educational schools fill every other position. Day schools take the first four places, and the highest school offering both day and boarding is St Peter's School 2-18 at joint fifth, followed by Bootham School in eighth place.

Cohort sizes differ sharply and affect how far a single figure can be trusted. The Grammar School At Leeds enters 190 A level students, St Peter's School 2-18 has 143 and Woodhouse Grove School has 124, whereas Read School has 11, Fyling Hall School 10, Darul Uloom Dawatul Imaan 10 and Al-Mahad Al-Islami 8. The Mount School (York) ranks 12th on 38.86 with 15 students, so a small number of results can move such a figure noticeably.

Entry points and fees at the ranked Yorkshire schools

Fees and entry points vary widely across the ranking, so the table below sets them side by side for the schools with an admissions guide on this site; each figure comes from the school's own website and carries the academic year it applies to.

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Which is the best girls' private school in Yorkshire for A levels?

Sheffield High School is the highest-ranked girls' school in Yorkshire, and the highest-ranked school of any kind, with an average point score of 48.47 (grade A) across 73 A level students. The next girls' school is Wakefield Girls' High School in 11th place on 38.95 (grade B) with 61 students, followed by Jaamiatul Imaam Muhammad Zakaria in 13th on 38.84 (grade B) with 58 students, which takes both day pupils and boarders.

Harrogate Ladies' College is listed as co-educational in the data and ranks 18th on 36.34, so it appears in the main table without being counted as a girls' school here. Al-Mahad Al-Islami, a girls' day school in South Yorkshire, is 29th on 13.13 with 8 students. The only boys' schools in the ranking are Eternal Light in Bradford, 27th on 24.73 with 38 students, and Darul Uloom Dawatul Imaan, also in Bradford, 28th on 17.78 with 10 students.

Which private schools in Yorkshire take boarders?

Many of the ranked schools are listed as day and boarding, and the highest of them is St Peter's School 2-18 in York, joint fifth on 43.57 with 143 students. Bootham School in York follows in eighth place on 42.83 with 81 students, and The Mount School (York) is 12th on 38.86.

Further down, Giggleswick School in Settle is 14th on 37.93, Woodhouse Grove School in Bradford is 15th on 37.38 and Ampleforth College is 16th on 37.13. Harrogate Ladies' College (36.34), Pocklington School (36.12), Read School in Selby (35.00) and Queen Ethelburga's College (34.10) follow in that order. The data records the type as day and boarding without separating weekly from full boarding, so that detail needs checking with each school.

How do private schools in Yorkshire compare by city and town?

Results vary within each city, and York has the most ranked schools listed under its name: St Peter's School 2-18 on 43.57, Bootham School on 42.83, The Mount School (York) on 38.86, Ampleforth College on 37.13, Pocklington School on 36.12 and Queen Ethelburga's College on 34.10. Sheffield has Sheffield High School on 48.47 and Birkdale School on 44.09, whilst Leeds has The Grammar School At Leeds on 47.08 and Gateways School on 37.09.

Bradford ranges widely, from Bradford Grammar School on 44.07 and Woodhouse Grove School on 37.38 to Eternal Light on 24.73. Wakefield has Queen Elizabeth Grammar School on 42.88 and Wakefield Girls' High School on 38.95, Harrogate has Ashville College on 40.94 and Harrogate Ladies' College on 36.34, and Hull is represented by Hymers College on 43.57 and Tranby on 31.85. Locations are shown as the DfE records them, so Hill House School appears under South Yorkshire and Silcoates School under West Yorkshire.

What does the ranking of Yorkshire private schools leave out?

The ranking covers A level entries only, so a school that teaches the International Baccalaureate in its sixth form may have few or no A level entries and then appears with a small group or does not appear at all. The average point score also says nothing about how selective a school's intake is, how results compare with pupils' starting points, or how many pupils stay on for the sixth form.

Cohort size is the other caveat visible in the table. Figures for Read School (11 students), Fyling Hall School (10) and Al-Mahad Al-Islami (8) rest on very few entrants, whereas The Grammar School At Leeds (190) and St Peter's School 2-18 (143) draw on large groups. Families comparing schools usually gain more from looking at the grade and student numbers together with subject choices and the school's published sixth-form entry requirements.

How the schools are ranked

The ranking covers every independent school in Yorkshire with a published average point score per A level entry in the Department for Education's 16 to 18 performance data, ordered from highest to lowest, with schools on the same figure sharing a rank. The figure counts A level entries only and is not adjusted for pupils' attainment on entry, and many of these schools select by entrance assessment.

The data is the Department for Education's own download from Compare school and college performance, so anyone can reproduce the order from the same file; the data year and source are listed in the key facts above.

Admissions guides for the ranked schools

• Sheffield High School (ranked 1)
• The Grammar School At Leeds (ranked 2)
• Birkdale School (ranked 3)
• Bradford Grammar School (ranked 4)
• Hymers College (ranked =5)
• St Peter's School 2-18 (ranked =5)
• Queen Elizabeth Grammar School (ranked 7)
• Bootham School (ranked 8)
• Ashville College (ranked 9)
• Hill House School (ranked 10)
• Giggleswick School (ranked 14)
• Woodhouse Grove School (ranked 15)
• Ampleforth College (ranked 16)
• Gateways School (ranked 17)
• Harrogate Ladies' College (ranked 18)
• Pocklington School (ranked 19)
• Silcoates School (ranked 20)
• Queen Ethelburga's College (ranked 22)
• Tranby (ranked 24)
• Ackworth School (ranked 25)
• Rishworth School (ranked 26)

Related guides

• Best grammar schools in Yorkshire
• Best private schools in the UK and London by A level results
• Independent school fees compared
• What is a bursary? Private school bursaries explained
• 11+ and 13+ scholarship exams explained
• Boarding schools in the UK

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