A new ranking from the independent education website, School Guide, has named the highest-rated state secondary schools in Bexley for 2026.
It is important to note that the rankings below may differ from official government league tables. This is discussed in more detail below.
The top 10 secondary schools in Bexley
1. Bexley Grammar School, Welling
2. Townley Grammar School, Bexleyheath
3. Chislehurst and Sidcup Grammar School, Sidcup
4. Beths Grammar School, Bexley
5. Harris Academy Falconwood, Falconwood
6. Blackfen School for Girls, Blackfen
7. Leigh Stationers’ Academy, London
8. Lift Bexleyheath, Bexleyheath
9. Cleeve Park School, Sidcup
10. Welling School, Welling
In some ways, the ranking is both predictable and expected. The four top schools in this ranking, for example, are the Bexley grammar schools. Virtually every child attending a grammar school has had two years of supplementary education at an 11 plus tuition centre. As a result, the jump from Key Stage 2 (final phase of primary schooling) to Key Stage 3 becomes seamless. The extra tuition from Year 4 to Year 6 for these children gives them an excellent foundation in English and Maths and acts as a springboard to propel their secondary schooling careers.
Meanwhile, schools outside of the top four are non-selective Bexley secondary state schools. Still, out of the 45 or so schools realistically available to most parents (excluding the expensive independent (private) schools), appearing in the top 10 is praiseworthy.
How School Guide creates its rankings
Unlike a simple exam score table, School Guide uses a blended score. According to its methodology, it combines up to 10 indicators using official government data, Ofsted reports, and parent reviews to produce a single overall rating for each school.
The key factors include:
· Attainment: How pupils perform in GCSEs.
· Progress: How much improvement pupils make from the start of secondary school.
· Attendance: Absence rates and persistent absence figures.
· Destinations: What pupils go on to do after Year 11 (further education, apprenticeships, or employment).
· Environment & Finances: Local crime, pollution, and the school’s budget health.
Why this ranking differs from DfE league tables
You might notice that the School Guide top 10 does not perfectly match the Department for Education’s (DfE) official performance data. This is due to three main reasons:
1. Different measures of success
The DfE’s primary measure for secondary schools is Progress 8. This score shows how much progress pupils made between the end of primary school (Key Stage 2) and the end of secondary school (Key Stage 4) . A school with very high exam results but lower pupil progress might rank higher on School Guide than on DfE lists, and vice versa.
2. Inclusion of non-academic data
School Guide factors in attendance, parent reviews, and even environmental data. The DfE’s performance tables focus almost exclusively on academic outcomes, progress, and destinations. A school with excellent pastoral care and strong attendance but slightly lower exam scores could rank higher on School Guide.
3. The impact of the pandemic on data
Currently, the DfE cannot calculate Progress 8 scores for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 academic years. This is because the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted primary school SATs, meaning there are no baseline results to calculate pupil progress. Therefore, current official data leans more heavily on attainment (raw exam results) than progress, while School Guide uses a broader set of historic and alternative metrics.
Final thoughts
League tables are produced by different organisations every year. These include governmental departments as well as media and educational agencies. Each table will have a slightly different focus, and as a result, yield a slightly different result.
It’s important not to get too hung up on the ranking from a specific table when deciding which schools to apply for. Instead, when deciding on secondary schools, it’s useful to use a triangulated approach; a part of this can be to look at league tables, but other actions could include visiting schools, speaking to fellow parents, looking at Ofsted reports, comparing neighboring schools, etc.