Top College Table

The Independent Sixth Form Colleges who published A Level Exam Grades for Summer 2012

It is more difficult to rank 6th form colleges than independent schools, because many of them do not release their results or they provide them in inconsistent formats. For this table, we have used the results (audited and unaudited) of those colleges, which are prepared to publicise them. We have simply taken the percentage of total A level entries, which were grades A or B. Some colleges would argue that A level resits should be excluded, but most of those were taken in January anyway and perversely their inclusion can sometimes depress the overall average grades. We have not included GCSEs because many colleges do not offer them or focus either on resits or short term GCSE courses. Some colleges are very selective on entry criteria whereas others may specialise in taking students with previous poor exam performance in order to transform their results. Thus you may need to ask colleges about their added value performance.

Please be aware that exam success is only one criterion in the search for a sixth form college. You are encouraged to read our free downloadable eGuide on how to select an independent sixth form college.

	A + A* + B %	Name	Day / Board	Boy / Girl	Day £	Board £
1	99.52	Cardiff Sixth Form College	Both	Co ed	12,000	27,000
2	94.72	Concord College - Shrewsbury	Both	Co-ed	11,940	28,600
3	90.93	Hurtwood House - Dorking	Both	Co-ed	NA	35,175
4	89.32	Albemarle Independent College - London	Day	Co-ed	16,950	NA
5	88.83	Abbey College - Cambridge	Both	Co-ed	21,000	NA
6	85.54	Brampton College - Hendon	Day	Co-ed	14,865	NA
7	81.19	D'Overbroeck's College - Oxford	Both	Co-ed	19,260	29,115
8	79.58	Cambridge Tutors College - Croydon	Both	Co-ed	18,360	NA
9	77.93	CATS Cambridge	Both	Co-ed	21,450	35,940
10	76.12	CATS Canterbury	Board	Co-ed	16,230	29,880
11	73.70	David Game College - London	Both	Co-ed	13,700	NA
12	72.78	Abbey College - London	Both	Co-ed	17,000	35,000
13	72.20	Bosworth Independent College - Northamptonshire	Both	Co-ed	18,000	26,000
14	71.00	Mander Portman Woodward - Cambridge	Day	Co-ed	NA	NA
14 =	71.00	Duff Miller College - London	Day	Co-ed	17,500	NA
16	69.60	Abbey College - Birmingham	Both	Co-ed	13,000	27,300
17	69.13	Rochester Independent College	Both	Co-ed	15,000	27,258
18	67.00	Ashbourne Independent Sixth Form College - London	Both	Co-ed	18,900	27,000
19	63.47	Welbeck - Loughborough	Boarding	Co-ed	NA	NA
20	63.32	Chelsea Independent College	Both	Co-ed	15,975	NA
21	63.29	Padworth College - Reading	Both	Co-ed	12,525	26,100
22	63.14	Lansdowne College - London	Both	Co-ed	16,970	NA
23	60.49	Abbey College - Manchester	Both	Co-ed	10,990	24,950
24	58.71	Davies Laing & Dick - London	Day	Co-ed	17,000	NA
25	56.03	Cambridge Centre For Sixth Form Studies	Both	Co-ed	17,670	29,850
26	54.38	Worksop College	Both	Co-ed	NA	NA

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