Cowbridge Comprehensive School has been named the best secondary school in Wales, topping the Sunday Times Parent Power Guide for 2025.
Cowbridge: Cowbridge Comprehensive School has snagged the title of the best secondary school in Wales. It topped the Sunday Times Parent Power Guide thanks to its impressive exam results from summer 2024.
Parents can easily check out how schools stack up against each other in their towns or across the country. The guide offers links to inspection reports from Estyn, which are regularly updated online.
Schools are ranked based on their A-level and GCSE performance, along with IGCSEs for independent schools. If a school isn’t listed, it’s likely because they didn’t provide their results or they couldn’t be found publicly.
Olchfa Comprehensive School came in second place, showing that there’s some stiff competition out there.
The full list of top schools in Wales includes Cowbridge School, which was named State Secondary School of the Year for 2025, and The Cathedral School in Llandaff, recognized as the best independent secondary school.
It’s pretty cool that the guide is considered the go-to source for school rankings. It’ll be available online on December 6 and in print on December 8, giving parents a chance to dive into a searchable database of over 2,000 schools.
Along with rankings, the guide offers tips for applying to top private schools and insights into various educational topics, like the impact of smartphones in schools and advice on fostering a love of reading in kids.
While no Welsh schools made it to the national awards, the guide still highlights the hard work of teachers and the innovative ways they’re preparing students for the future.