London’s 17 best schools have been revealed by the Fairer Schools Index 2025

Finding a good school for your kids is a pretty big deal, that’s why there are loads of different, and sometimes conflicting, rankings. But many of these lists fail to look at things holistically, rating schools purely on exam results. That’s why the Fairer Schools Index was invented, and it has just revealed the top 50 state schools in the UK for 2025. 

In the index schools are measured using traditional performance metrics as well as extra factors, such as ethnicity, pupil demographics, and deprivation. Analysts from the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, the think-tank that publishes the Fairer Schools Index, said taking into account the extra metrics removes some of the built-in bias against secondary schools teaching children from deprived areas in the Department for Education’s (DfE) league tables. 

This list was created to make rankings fairer based on the school’s area; once socio-economic factors are considered some schools climbed more than 1,500 places compared to their DfE ranking. 

Chief executive of the Northern Powerhouse Henri Murison said: ‘We must demand the best for every child. Those schools that beat the odds stacked against their pupils should be recognised as being high performing. And that will drive down the disadvantage gap over the next decade and reduce the gaps which exist across – and between – parts of England today.’

A total of 17 London schools made the top 50 ranking for 2025. London schools in the top 50 included Brent’s Michaela Community School, ranked in second in the UK, Yesodey Hatorah Senior Girls School in Hackney in sixth place, and Mossbourne Victoria Park Academy in Hackney in eighth place. 

Read more about the UK-wide list here. 

The best schools in London according to the Fairer Schools Index 

1. Michaela Community School – Brent
2. Yesodey Hatorah Senior Girls School – Hackney
3. Mossbourne Victoria Park Academy – Hackney
4. Mossbourne Community Academy – Hackney
5. The St Thomas the Apostle College – Southwark
6. Twyford Church of England High School – Ealing
7. Ealing Fields High School – Ealing
8. Menorah High School for Girls – Brent
9. Ark Greenwich Free School – Greenwich
10. Sacred Heart Catholic School – Southwark
11. Finchley Catholic High School – Barnet
12. Gunnersbury Catholic School – Hounslow
13. JFS – Brent
14. Swanlea School – Tower Hamlets
15. Lubavitch House School (Senior Girls) – Hackney
16. Ashcroft Technology Academy – Wandsworth
17. Alexandra Park School – Haringey

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Two private schools in London have been named the best in the UK, according to the Telegraph. And what about universities? At Time Out we’ve covered all the rankings, by the likes of the Daily Mail, Guardian, QS and ARWU. Read on to find out which ones are the best. 

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