This year, having got more than the all-clear from Ofsted, Ampleforth is back in the top ten along with two new additions: girls’ school The Laurels and its brother school The Cedars. Based in South London’s Upper Norwood, near Croydon, on a large campus which they share with Oakwood prep school, both schools have impressed us with their uncompromising Catholic vision and increasingly high academic standards. 

Boarding schools St Mary’s Ascot, Stonyhurst, Mayfield,  New Hall, Downside and Worth remain in the top ten from last year, as does day school St George’s Weybridge for its commitment to its Josephite roots – unique in the UK – which teach the values  of “Politesse and Douceur, Honesty and Compassion, Zeal  and Happiness”.