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Stock image of Strathearn School in East Belfast(Image: Strathearn School\/Facebook)<\/p>\nThe guide is recognised as the definitive ranking of the UK’s top schoolsStock image of Strathearn School in East Belfast(Image: Strathearn School\/Facebook)<\/p>\n
The top schools in Northern Ireland<\/a> have been named in the annual The Sunday Times Parent Power Guide 2026.<\/p>\n Strathearn School in East Belfast<\/a> has been crowned State Secondary School of the Year in Northern Ireland for Academic Excellence, and 31st on the UK ranking. Rathmore Grammar School in South Belfast<\/a> has been named as Secondary School of the Year in Northern Ireland.<\/p>\n The state Secondary School of the Year is based on schools that have improved most over the last year in the table, according to background from the Sunday Times.<\/p>\n READ MORE: NI primary school closed over roof concerns<\/a>READ MORE: WATCH: Co Tyrone school rivals John Lewis with heartfelt Christmas video release<\/a><\/p>\n The top ten schools in Northern Ireland have been named on the list and given a regional rank in the guide published online<\/a> on Friday, December 5.<\/p>\n A statement from the Sunday Times said: “Recognised as the definitive ranking of the UK\u2019s top primary and secondary state and independent schools, this guide remains an essential resource for parents seeking the very best in education for their children.<\/p>\n “The guide includes a fully searchable national database of more than 2,000 schools by name, local authority, town and postcode. As well as an assessment of academic results on a school-by-school basis, Parent Power enables parents to compare the performance of a given school with other schools in the same area, local authority or nationally.”<\/p>\n Helen Davies, editor of The Sunday Times Parent Power Guide, added: “The educational landscape is testing \u2013 budget challenges, rising student mental health issues, special educational<\/a> needs and an increasingly uncertain future.<\/p>\n “But there is also so much to celebrate from the dedication of teachers who are finding ever more innovative and impactful ways to enrich their students and give them the very best start in life.<\/p>\n “As well as celebrating the academic excellence of the top schools it is uplifting to see how they are shaping their students to be ready for the 21st century, and instilling a lifelong love of learning.”<\/p>\n The top 10 secondary schools in Northern Ireland<\/p>\n Regional rank<\/strong><\/p>\n National<\/strong><\/p>\n rank<\/strong><\/p>\n School Name<\/strong><\/p>\n Location<\/strong><\/p>\n 1<\/p>\n 31<\/p>\n Strathearn School<\/p>\n *State Secondary School of the Year in Northern Ireland for Academic Excellence<\/p>\n Belfast<\/p>\n 2<\/p>\n 35<\/p>\n Rathmore Grammar School<\/p>\n *State Secondary School of the Year in Northern Ireland<\/p>\n Belfast<\/p>\n 3<\/p>\n 36<\/p>\n St Dominic\u2019s Grammar School for Girls<\/p>\n Belfast<\/p>\n 4<\/p>\n 46=<\/p>\n Friends\u2019 School Lisburn<\/p>\n Lisburn<\/p>\n 5<\/p>\n 48<\/p>\n Our Lady and St Patrick\u2019s College, Knock<\/p>\n Belfast<\/p>\n 6<\/p>\n 53<\/p>\n Lumen Christi College<\/p>\n Derry<\/p>\n 7<\/p>\n 61=<\/p>\n Sullivan Upper School<\/p>\n Holywood<\/p>\n 8<\/p>\n 64<\/p>\n Banbridge Academy<\/p>\n Banbridge<\/p>\n 9<\/p>\n 65<\/p>\n St Louis Grammar School<\/p>\n Ballymena<\/p>\n 10<\/p>\n 69<\/p>\n Aquinas Diocesan Grammar School<\/p>\n Belfast<\/p>\n You can read the full guide from The Sunday Times by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage<\/strong> here<\/a> and sign up to our daily newsletter<\/a> here.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The guide is recognised as the definitive ranking of the UK’s top schoolsStock image of Strathearn School in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":613441,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5011],"tags":[958,80195,88580,73833,2266,113228,86570,1144,857,133077,16,15,94156],"class_list":{"0":"post-613440","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-northern-ireland","8":"tag-ballymena","9":"tag-co-derry","10":"tag-co-down","11":"tag-east-belfast","12":"tag-education","13":"tag-holywood","14":"tag-lisburn","15":"tag-northern-ireland","16":"tag-schools","17":"tag-south-belfast","18":"tag-uk","19":"tag-united-kingdom","20":"tag-west-belfast"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115666040106687498","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/613440","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=613440"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/613440\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/613441"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=613440"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=613440"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=613440"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}