GCSE results maps released today show a stark divide between London and the rest of England when it comes to top grades. Anxious youngsters across the country have been opening their GCSE results as they plan their futures at sixth form, college or in training.
In London, 28.5% of grades were seven or higher, equivalent to A or A* in traditional grades. The South East followed with 24.6%, the East of England with 22.0%, and the South West with 21.0%. Further north, figures dropped to 19.0% in Yorkshire and The Humber, 18.9% in the North West, 18.3% in the West Midlands, and 18.2% in the East Midlands.
North East records worst GCSE results
The North East had the worst GCSE results of any region in England, with just 17.7% of grades at seven or higher. This represents a gap of 10.8 percentage points from London, up from 10.3 points last year.
The City of London topped the council rankings for A or A* grades, with nearly three quarters (72.1%) of all grades at seven or above. Richmond upon Thames had the next best results with 43.4%, followed by fellow London boroughs Sutton at 43.0% and Kingston upon Thames at 42.5%.
Trafford in Greater Manchester came fifth with 39.7% achieving a grade 7 or above, the highest score outside the south of England by some distance. The next highest council outside the south was Rutland in 51st place with 28.3%, followed by York with 27.0%.
Social mobility expert criticises educational divide
Lee Elliot Major, professor of social mobility at the University of Exeter, said: "It is a damning indictment of 21st-century Britain that where you happen to grow up has such a profound impact on your educational and life chances."
He added: "Something is fundamentally amiss when children with the same talents and potential face such different prospects simply because of where they happen to live. England's educational divide is a story of London increasingly pulling away from much of the rest of the country."
Professor Major continued: "But these broad regional divides conceal an even more troubling geography of opportunity: sometimes a few streets, or a different postcode, can make the difference between a life of opportunity and a life of overlooked talent."
Top grades rise slightly, pass rates return to pre-pandemic levels
The proportion of GCSE entries awarded top grades has risen from last year, but the rate scoring a decent pass has returned to pre-pandemic levels, national figures show. While traditional A*-G grades are used in Northern Ireland and Wales, England uses a 9-1 system, where 9 is the highest. A 4 is broadly equivalent to a C grade, and a 7 is broadly equivalent to an A.
Overall entries for GCSEs have risen slightly, up 0.6% on 2025 after dropping last year. The overall rate for grades 1/G or above is 97.9%, the same as 2025 but down from 98.3% in 2019.
Among the worst performing councils were Knowsley with 8.3% of grades at seven or higher, Blackpool with 10.4%, Halton and North East Lincolnshire both with 11.1%, and Cumberland with 11.5%.
