The number of London students achieving A or A* grades has increased in 2026
Ian Jones, Press Association
09:30, 13 Aug 2026
The gap between the proportion of A level entries in London getting the top grades and the equivalent figure in both north-east England and the East Midlands has reached a new record size. Some 32.7% of A Level entries in the capital were awarded A or A* this year, up from 32.1% in 2025 and the highest for any region in England, the exam results show.
The North East and the East Midlands had the joint lowest rate, at 23.1%. The gap between London students and each of these two regions now stands at 9.6 percentage points, the largest since the present system of grading began in 2010, according to Press Association analysis.
In north-east England, the gap has widened from 9.2 points in 2025, though the proportion of entries getting A or A* rose slightly this year, from 22.9% to 23.1%.
By contrast, the East Midlands saw a drop in entries awarded the top grades, from 23.8% to 23.1%, the biggest fall of any region. This pushed the gap with London up from 8.3 points in 2025 to 9.6 points this year.
Two other regions saw a year-on-year fall in entries awarded the top grades: eastern England, down from 28.0% to 27.9%, and north-west England, down from 26.6% to 26.5%. After London, the region with the highest percentage of entries getting A or A* was south-east England, at 31.5%.
The results also show that for entries receiving the very top grade of A*, London again has the highest figure this year, at 12.0%, up from 11.6% in 2025. North-east England and the East Midlands have the joint lowest at 6.9% – up from 6.8% in the North East, but down from 7.4% in the East Midlands.
The East Midlands is the only region to see a year-on-year fall in entries getting A*. At a national level, 10.7% of A-level entries this year in Wales received A*, higher than the equivalent figure for England (9.6%) and Northern Ireland (8.8%).
For entries awarded A or above, Northern Ireland was ahead at 30.7%, above Wales (29.6%) and England (28.3%).
Percentages of A-level entries awarded the top grade of A*
Listed by nation and region in 2026, with the equivalent figure for 2025 and the pre-pandemic year of 2019:
– North-east England 6.9% (2025: 6.8%; 2019: 6.7%)
– North-west England 8.4% (2025: 8.3%; 2019: 6.9%)
– Yorkshire & the Humber 7.9% (2025: 7.7%; 2019: 6.5%)
– West Midlands 7.7% (2025: 7.4%; 2019: 6.3%)
– East Midlands 6.9% (2025: 7.4%; 2019: 5.8%)
– Eastern England 9.5% (2025: 9.3%; 2019: 7.9%)
– South-west England 8.9% (2025: 8.9%; 2019: 8.0%)
– South-east England 11.3% (2025: 11.0%; 2019: 9.0%)
– London 12.0% (2025: 11.6%; 2019: 8.7%)
– England 9.6% (2025: 9.4%; 2019: 7.7%)
– Wales 10.7% (2025: 10.5%; 2019: 8.9%)
– Northern Ireland 8.8% (2025: 8.7%; 2019: 8.0%)
– All 9.6% (2025: 9.4%; 2019: 7.7%)
Percentages of A-level entries awarded A or A*
– North-east England 23.1% (2025: 22.9%; 2019: 23.0%)
– North-west England 26.5% (2025: 26.6%; 2019: 23.5%)
– Yorkshire & the Humber 25.7% (2025: 25.3%; 2019: 23.2%)
– West Midlands 24.2% (2025: 24.2%; 2019: 22.0%)
– East Midlands 23.1% (2025: 23.8%; 2019: 21.0%)
– Eastern England 27.9% (2025: 28.0%; 2019: 25.6%)
– South-west England 27.2% (2025: 27.0%; 2019: 25.8%)
– South-east England 31.5% (2025: 31.3%; 2019: 28.3%)
– London 32.7% (2025: 32.1%; 2019: 26.9%)
– England 28.3% (2025: 28.2%; 2019: 25.2%)
– Wales 29.6% (2025: 29.5%; 2019: 26.5%)
– Northern Ireland 30.7% (2025: 30.3%; 2019: 29.4%)
– All 28.5% (2025: 28.3%; 2019: 25.4%)
Percentages of A-level entries awarded C or above
– North-east England 75.8% (2025: 74.9%; 2019: 76.3%)
– North-west England 78.4% (2025: 78.2%; 2019: 75.6%)
– Yorkshire & the Humber 78.1% (2025: 76.8%; 2019: 74.7%)
– West Midlands 74.6% (2025: 74.2%; 2019: 72.8%)
– East Midlands 73.5% (2025: 73.6%; 2019: 73.0%)
– Eastern England 77.9% (2025: 77.8%; 2019: 75.7%)
– South-west England 77.9% (2025: 77.3%; 2019: 76.0%)
– South-east England 79.5% (2025: 79.5%; 2019: 78.0%)
– London 80.5% (2025: 79.5%; 2019: 74.8%)
– England 78.1% (2025: 77.7%; 2019: 75.5%)
– Wales 77.6% (2025: 77.2%; 2019: 76.3%)
– Northern Ireland 86.9% (2025: 85.8%; 2019: 85.0%)
– All 78.4% (2025: 77.9%; 2019: 75.9%)
