A council (local authority) in Yorkshire and the Humber
In short: Most primary schools here are rated Good or better, about the same as across England. Results at 11 are close to England, and results at 16 were above England in 2026. Attendance is close to the England figure.
York at a glance
How York's schools compare with England, area by area.
Primary and secondary schools are ranked by Eduscope score, which weighs up results, inspections, attendance and more. Nurseries, special and independent schools aren't ranked. A high score isn't everything: always visit.
50 mainstream schools in York, best first
Results well above the England average.
60 first choices, 60 offers made
Met the standard at 1184%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
66 first choices, 27 offers made
Met the standard at 1177%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
55 first choices, 60 offers made
Met the standard at 1177%
England 62%
9 mainstream schools in York, best first
Results well above the England average.
302 first choices, 286 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1659.7
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
229 first choices, 174 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1655.1
England 46.2
Results above the England average.
196 first choices, 223 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1650.4
England 46.2
67 in York, highest Ofsted grade first
York, YO23 2SB · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
York, YO26 4YZ · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
York, YO23 2RE · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
10 in York, by the school's Eduscope score
Results well above the England average.
302 first choices, 286 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1659.7
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
229 first choices, 174 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1655.1
England 46.2
York, YO10 5ZA · Academy · Secondary · Ages 11 to 18
Results above the England average.
305 first choices, 294 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1652.7
England 46.2
4 in York. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
York, YO31 0LW · Academy · Secondary · Ages 11 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
York, YO24 4PS · Academy · Primary · Ages 3 to 11
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Dunnington, YO19 5PA · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 16
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
7 in York. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Dunnington, YO19 5PA · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 16
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
York, YO10 4PB · Independent · All-through · Ages 3 to 16
Independent school. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
York, YO30 7BU · Independent · All-through · Ages 2 to 19
Independent school. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Each dot is a school or nursery, coloured by its latest Ofsted grade. Point at a dot to see its name, or use the list.
Apply through the council where you live, even for a school in another council's area. Independent schools take applications directly.
York is a unitary authority in Yorkshire and the Humber with 50 mainstream primary schools and 9 mainstream secondary schools. Towns with the most schools include York, Huntington and Bishopthorpe. Most families get the secondary school they want: 93.7% got their first choice, against 83.6% across England.
From York council's website, checked 7 November 2026. Check the council's pages before you apply.
School admissions team: education@york.gov.uk
If a date falls on a weekend or bank holiday, offers go out the next working day.
94.1%got their first-choice primary school in York in 2026. England: 92.4%. Ranked 56 of 151 councils. 99.0% got one of their top three.1.2% were offered a primary school in another council. England: 3.6%.
93.7%got their first-choice secondary school in York in 2026. England: 83.6%. Ranked 18 of 151 councils. 98.6% got one of their top three.3.3% were offered a secondary school in another council. England: 8.0%.
Source: DfE applications and offers, 2026. A low rate shows high demand, not poor schools.
4 of 10 primary appeals heard in York succeeded in 2025. 16 of 30 secondary appeals heard in York succeeded in 2025.
| Term | Starts | Half term | Ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autumn | 7 Sept | 26 Oct to 30 Oct | 18 Dec |
| Spring | 4 Jan | 8 Feb to 12 Feb | 19 Mar |
| Summer | 5 Apr | 31 May to 4 Jun | 26 Jul |
For schools that follow the council's dates. Academies, faith and foundation schools can set their own, and schools add training days. Source, checked 6 November 2026.
Pick a stage to see every York school for that age, with filters for type, faith and Ofsted grade.
Ages 0 to 4
All 56 inspected are Good or better.
67nurseries
Ages 4 to 11
98% Good or better. 63% met the standard at 11.
57schools
Ages 11 to 16
All 7 inspected are Good or better. 53% got grade 5 in English and maths.
18schools
All 3 inspected are Good or better. About 7 pupils per teacher.
4schools
Here's how York's schools break down by type, faith and more.
The blue bar is the average Eduscope score of the primary schools in each town. The black line is the York average, 53.
Some areas, like parts of a bigger town, are easiest to find by postcode.
Inspections, exam results and attendance, next to the figure for England where we have it.
YorkEngland
Primaries rated Good or Outstanding
Latest Ofsted grade, 40 primaries with one.
98%
England 96%
Close to England
Secondaries rated Good or Outstanding
7 of the 7 with a grade.
100%
England 93%
Met the expected standard at 11
Reading, writing and maths.
63%
England 62%
Close to England
Grade 5 or above in English and maths
At GCSE.
53%
Pupils who miss a lot of school
Missed 1 in 10 days or more. Lower is better.
18%
England 18%
Close to England
Primary pupils on free school meals
A sign of family income, not of school quality.
19%
Latest graded inspection for the 53 schools that have one.
96%
Good or Outstanding
York in blue. There were no tests in 2020 and 2021 because of Covid.
The latest published year for each measure. Sources and years are on our data sources page.
| Measure | York | England |
|---|---|---|
| Good or Outstanding (Ofsted) | 96% | 95% |
| Met the expected standard at 11 (KS2) | 63% | 62% |
| Attainment 8 | 49.6 | 46.2 |
| Persistent absence | 18% | 18% |
| Pupils per teacher | 18.7:1 | 17.9:1 |
| Spending per pupil | £7,408 | £8,120 |
| In education or work after 16 | 92% | 91% |
| Went on to higher education | 54% | 56% |
| Pupils with special educational needs | 18% | 21% |
| Pupils with English as an additional language | 11% | 22% |
| Pupils on free school meals | 18% | 27% |
DfE local authority code 816, ONS code E06000014.
York has 136 schools and nurseries across 4 towns and villages, the biggest being York, Huntington, Bishopthorpe and Haxby.
Pupil numbers are about the same as in 2018.
19% of primary pupils here get free school meals. Schools get extra money for each of them.
Pupils in York's state schools each January.
Down 1% since 2018.
Out of every 10 primary pupils, how many get free school meals. It's a sign of family income, not of school quality.
York19%
Follow any school and we'll email you when it gets a new Ofsted report or new results are out. Nothing else.
York has 136 schools, including 57 primary schools, 18 secondary schools, 67 nurseries, 7 independent schools, 4 special schools. Some count in more than one group. You can browse each category using the filters on Eduscope.
The highest-ranked schools in York on Eduscope are Knavesmire Primary School, Lord Deramore's Primary School, Fulford School. We rank each state school against schools of the same phase across England on its Ofsted inspection, results and attendance. Independent, special and nursery schools aren't ranked.
96% of inspected schools in York hold a Good or Outstanding Ofsted rating, which is above the England average of 94.8%. This includes 7 schools rated Outstanding and 44 rated Good.
Across primary schools in York, 63% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing, and maths at Key Stage 2. This is based on the latest published results from the Department for Education.
The average pupil-teacher ratio across schools in York is 18.7:1. While not a direct measure of class size, this indicates the level of teaching resource available per pupil. Across England it is 17.9:1.
The persistent absence rate across schools in York is 17.5%. A pupil is classed as persistently absent if they miss 10% or more of school sessions. Across England it is 18.1%.
There are 24,929 pupils enrolled across schools in York, with 13,121 in primary and 11,757 in secondary. 18.4% of pupils are eligible for free school meals.
There are 7 independent schools in York. Fees vary by school and age group, with day school fees typically ranging from £10,000 to £20,000 per year. You can compare all private schools in York on Eduscope, including ISI inspection ratings where available.
Start by considering your child's age, your location, and whether you prefer a state or independent school. Use Eduscope to compare 136 schools in York by Ofsted ratings, exam results, and distance. Filter by school type, gender, religious character, and admissions policy to narrow your options.
Sources: DfE school performance tables, DfE school census and workforce, DfE pupil absence, Ofsted. Photos are stand-ins.
