Creating Value In Schools
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The 2025 A level results have again highlighted growing regional differences, with a nine per cent gap between highest attainer London and the North East. In terms of subject choice, languages and humanities are decreasing in popularity, while STEM subjects are riding high, with maths and psychology top choices. The percentage of pupils achieving the highest grades at A level is up slightly, but this was a smaller cohort than last year.
The North East is now the only region in England where top grades are still below pre-Covid levels, and there’s a nine percentage gap in attainment between London and the North East. 32% of pupils in London achieved an A or above, compared to 23% in the North East.
24.9% of 18-year-olds from the North East have secured a university place on results day compared to 43.4% of 18-year-olds from London. This is the highest gap on record (Young people across England celebrate exam results).
In Schools Week Chris Zarraga, director of Schools North East, comments: “This is not about school quality… It is about deep-rooted structural inequalities that no government has seriously addressed.”
The North East has the highest rate of pupils with SEND, and nearly a third eligible for free school meals, compared to a quarter nationally. Absence rates are high too, as well as challenges with school readiness and access to high quality early years education.
But while Chris Zarraga states that school quality is not the issue, research shared by Teach First earlier this year highlighted the challenge of recruiting teachers to schools in disadvantaged areas. For example, they found that almost 1 in 10 schools in the poorest areas (9%) do not offer physics A-level due to a lack of trained teachers in physics, compared to just 1% of schools in the most affluent areas. 31% do not offer computer studies, and 23% do not offer French.
Furthermore, Teach First’s results day analysis found that disadvantaged pupils are more likely to drop out of an A level than to get a top grade.
Maths is once again the most popular A level, with psychology second. FFT’s diagram shows trends based on provisional data – which subjects have seen increases in entry, and which are declining?
Source: FFT Education Datalab: Five things to look out for on results day for A-Levels, T-Levels and other Level 3 qualifications
Maths is still riding high, with economics growing in popularity. This data suggests that psychology may have reached its peak, with decreasing numbers – despite it still being the second most taken subject this year.
French is definitely still taking a hit, though ‘other modern languages’, which includes Arabic, Chinese and Polish, are on the up. Spanish entries also continue to rise.
But the general trend is very much pro-STEM, with more students taking maths, physics and chemistry than at any other time since modern records began, as noted in the DfE press release. Which is a good thing economically, with maths and science skills very much in demand.
However, it’s worth noting, as highlighted in research conducted by the CfEY in 2024, that:
The proportion of pupils achieving top grades has increased slightly, with 28.2% of grades at A or above, compared to 27.6% in 2024. Also, boys have outperformed girls in this year's top A-level grades; possibly this is linked to the popularity of maths and the greater likelihood that boys will take the subject rather than girls.
Also, overall it was a smaller A level cohort this year. This group of students took their GCSEs in 2023, the first year to return to ‘normal’ grading post-pandemic. Consequently results went down, and then fewer pupils were deemed eligible for A levels.
Finally, we have a 60% rise in students finishing T levels this year, so more results to add into the mix. There was an overall pass rate of 91.4% for T levels, with 65% of students achieving a merit or above.
