The Sunday Times features its Parent Power tables, based on the academic outcomes of state and independent schools in the UK using the latest A-level and GCSE results. 

An article details the best independent schools in the UK, and leading the Parent Power league table with the best results is St Paul’s School, which has been named the Independent Secondary School of the Year for Academic Excellence and Independent Secondary School of the Year in London for Academic Excellence. Sally-Anne Huang, the school's high master, is quoted, saying: "This is a generation that lived through challenges, but they have come through strong." The paper's analysis also reveals that boys’ schools appear in half of the top 10 independent and state schools this year. The highest-ranked coeducational school is Brighton College, in second place, while North London Collegiate School, in third place, is the highest-ranked girls’ independent school. Dame Allan’s Schools, King Edward’s School, The Perse School, and Queen Ethelburga’s College are also highlighted as leading independent schools. An interactive table of independent schools allows readers to search by school name. By Helen Davies.

Also featured are articles on the top 1,000 primary schools in England, by Julie Henry, Nick Rodrigues and Yennah Smart; and the best state and grammar schools in the UK, by Helen Davies. Regionally, there are also rankings for the best schools in East Anglia, by Zoe Dare Hall; London, by Helen Davies, Louise Eccles and Hannah Swerling; the North East, by Jayne Dowle; the West Midlands, by Helen Davies and Julie Henry; the East Midlands, by Eleanor Doughty; the South East, by Helen Davies, Louise Eccles and Julie Henry; the South West, by Helen Davies; Scotland, by Sue Leonard; Wales, by Helen Davies; and Northern Ireland, by Jayne Dowle.

A parent's guide to primary school explains what parents can expect at each stage of school from Reception to Year 7, covering curriculum changes, homework, key milestones, and how best to support children academically, emotionally and socially. Dragon School and Horris Hill School are both mentioned. By Alexandra Goss. Another item reports on the growing use of therapy dogs in UK schools to support children’s reading and wellbeing. By Louise Eccles.

A guide to the paper's methodology is also included, along with a searchable guide for readers to compare the top state and independent secondary and primary schools. By Nick Rodrigues and Helen Davies.

A significant number of schools in membership of the ISC's constituent associations are mentioned in this year's Sunday Times Parent Power tables. The paper notes: "If a school does not appear on the Parent Power league table it is most likely to be because it did not respond to our requests for its A-level and GCSE results, and the results could not be found in the public domain."

According to analysis by The Sunday Times for Parent Power, nearly a fifth of UK independent schools reduced spending on bursaries and scholarships ahead of the introduction of VAT on fees, reflecting financial pressures. The paper's analysis suggests that, overall, the number of pupils receiving means-tested bursaries fell to 36,918 in January 2025, down 4.2 per cent from the previous year. Speaking to the paper on the importance of bursary provision, Matthew Judd, the headteacher of Christ’s Hospital School, said: "Bursaries are a central part of our mission of taking people from backgrounds of disadvantage and giving them an education that is truly transformative." By Robert Watts and Julie Henry. Data from the 2025 ISC Census shows that ISC schools provide £547 million of means-tested fee assistance, up from £539 million last year. The total value of means-tested bursaries and scholarships provided by schools has increased by £272 million since 2011, a rise of 104 per cent.  

The government has pledged to lift around 550,000 children out of poverty by 2030 and stop young people having to grow up in bed and breakfast (B&B) accommodation. It also wants to make childcare more accessible for families on Universal Credit as part of its child poverty strategy. Homelessness charities have welcomed the plans, but are urging greater changes to lift people out of poverty. By Hayley Clarke, BBC News. 

A significant fall in the number of school pupils over the next decade means the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, could 'raid' the education budget for savings, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has said. The number of children in the UK is projected to decline by 800,000, about seven per cent, between 2025 and 2035 as the birth rate decreases. A fall in the number of pupils could allow ministers to cut costs by closing schools, reducing the number of teachers employed or cutting class numbers, according to the think tank. By Emma Taggart, The Telegraph.

In a letter to The Telegraph, Joy Davies from Stockton-on-Tees asks how much councils are spending on the education and transport of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) who were "previously well catered for" in independent schools. "Equally, if the chancellor is amassing money from taxing such schools, how much is being used to employ extra SEND teachers?" she adds. The letter appears below halfway.

One in three alternative provision (AP) schools can only estimate the number of children on their rolls, Dame Rachel de Souza, the children’s commissioner for England, has warned. In a report on the special and alternative provision sector, she said AP settings "do not know their pupils well – and know them less well than special and mainstream school settings". By Ruth Lucas, Schools Week. 

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