Last reviewed: July 2026 · Rankings and key information above update regularly, however, this review below is refreshed bi-annually and may not reflect recent changes. If you spot anything outdated or inaccurate, please let us know.
More than four in every ten A-level grades awarded here reach A*, and the college now ranks among the highest-performing sixth forms in England. Cardiff Sixth Form College, Cambridge occupies a city-centre site on Regent Street, minutes from the university whose name it borrows and whose ambitions it shares. The founding college was established in Cardiff in 2004 around small classes and close individual attention; the Cambridge campus opened in June 2022 and has grown quickly since. Dr Julian Davies leads it as founding Head. It is a selective, co-educational college for students aged 14 to 19, part of the Dukes Education group, offering full boarding and day places with a curriculum weighted firmly towards the sciences, mathematics and computing. Ofsted rated it Good in 2023. Fees sit at the top end of the independent sector, and the academic pace is intense by design.
This is a small, single-minded college. The roll is under 100 students, drawn from 43 nationalities, and almost everyone boards. That combination produces an environment closer to an early undergraduate seminar than a conventional school. There is a genuine buzz of intellectual curiosity here, and students are hungry for new knowledge and experiences well beyond the exam specification. The atmosphere is harmonious rather than pressured, and students report feeling safe and genuinely known by the people who teach them. That personal knowledge is possible because the numbers are so small: a tutor here can hold every student in mind at once, tracking not just grades but confidence, workload and university ambitions.
The specialism shapes everything. Science, mathematics and computer science form the core offer, and the students who thrive are those who already know they want to read medicine, engineering, natural sciences or economics at a leading university. Ambition is the shared currency, and the intensity is real: students themselves describe the school day as tiring, a reflection of how much is packed into it. This is not a school that hides its priorities. It exists to convert able, driven teenagers into strong university candidates, and it organises the week around that goal.
Part of the Dukes Education group, the college carries the identity of a national provider built on selective, results-focused sixth-form teaching. Yet daily life feels intimate rather than corporate. With teaching groups this small, staff know each student's target grades, weak topics and university plans, and the boarding houses give the community a residential rhythm that a day-only college could not. The recognition has followed: the college was named UK Independent School of the Year for A Levels for 2026 and Welsh Independent School of the Year for Academic Excellence in 2025, alongside awards for boarding and for its international student experience. Those accolades tell prospective families what the college is optimised for, and equally what it is not built to be.
The headline is exceptional. In a dedicated ranking, Cardiff Sixth Form College, Cambridge places 33rd of 2,562 schools in England for A-level results, the top 1.3%, ranked against all schools in England with published A-level results, state and independent. On the blended overall measure, which combines results with a FindMySchool inspection score, it sits 35th of 2,561, and 3rd of all sixth-form providers in Cambridge. These are proprietary FindMySchool rankings built from official data, and they place the college firmly among the highest-performing in England.
The grade profile explains the standing. A* accounts for 40.6% of entries, with A*-A reaching 78% against an England average of 23.6%. Extend the band to A*-A-B and the figure climbs to 95.5%, more than double the England average of 47.2% for grades A* to B. Sustaining that distribution matters more than it might at first appear, because the subjects concentrate in the harder sciences and mathematics, where high grades are notoriously difficult to bank. Doing so with a cohort this small, and doing it consistently enough to top the awards tables, is the single clearest reason families consider the college.
Two caveats keep the picture honest. The cohort is tiny, so a handful of individual results moves the headline percentages far more than they would at a large school, and year-to-year figures should be read with that volatility in mind. The offer is also narrow. These numbers describe outstanding strength in a focused set of quantitative subjects rather than breadth across the arts, languages and humanities, and a student whose ambitions lie outside the sciences will find fewer routes here than at a broader sixth form. For the college's target intake, though, the results are about as strong as the English independent sector produces.
England ranks and key metrics (where available)
A-Level A*-B
95.49%
% of students achieving grades A*-B
Ranking figures update automatically as our data refreshes and are the definitive source. Any rankings quoted in the review text were accurate when it was written and may since have changed.
Teachers here are subject specialists first, expert in their fields, and the curriculum leans on that depth by concentrating on scientific, technological and mathematical study. Class sizes are small enough that lessons run as fast-paced discussions rather than lectures, and the culture rewards independent reading well beyond the syllabus. Assessment is frequent, feedback is close, and target grades are tracked in a way that would be impossible in a large cohort. For a self-motivated student, this is a rich environment; for one who needs coaxing, the pace can be unforgiving.
The flagship vehicle for stretch is the Cambridge Edge, a super-curricular programme that layers university-level lectures, research projects, mentoring and real-world placements on top of A-level teaching. Its projects are unusually advanced for school-age students. One Year 12 Algae Fuel Cell EPQ examined bio-photovoltaic electricity generation with postdoctoral support from the Cambridge Biochemistry Department; another student built an Inertial Electrostatic Confinement Fusor to probe plasma confinement and quantum tunnelling; a third researched superconducting magnets and Maglev transport. The Extended Project Qualification runs alongside these, giving students a formal independent-research credential and rehearsing the habits of self-directed study that university demands. Work at this level does more than decorate a personal statement: it teaches students to frame a question, handle failure, and defend a method, which is exactly what admissions tutors for competitive science courses look for.
The teaching is not beyond refinement. A recognised area for development is that a few curriculum plans do not yet think carefully enough about the best methods to teach particular key concepts, and the college has been working to make planning and delivery consistently strong so students always understand why they are learning in a given way. It is a fine-tuning point in an otherwise high-functioning academic operation rather than a structural weakness, and the results suggest the fundamentals are firmly in place.
Destinations match the results. In 2025, 55% of leavers took up Russell Group university places and 33% went to the G5 group of Oxbridge, Imperial College London, UCL and the LSE, with 81% reaching institutions ranked among the top QS universities worldwide. Medicine, engineering and the pure sciences are the dominant routes, which follows directly from the curriculum, and the college's careers guidance is a genuine strength, giving students meaningful insight into higher education and the world of work well before they apply.
Oxbridge success is a defining feature. Over the past decade the college's students have taken up 45 places at the University of Cambridge and 20 at the University of Oxford, and in 2025 alone it secured 3 Cambridge and 5 Oxford offers. For a college of this size, that concentration of offers to the two most competitive universities in the country is remarkable, and it reflects a model built specifically around the interview, admissions-test and super-curricular demands of those applications. Students preparing for medicine, natural sciences or engineering benefit from staff who have guided that route many times and from the research experience the Cambridge Edge builds in. The pattern is not a one-off: across the last decade the college has sent a steady stream of students into the G5 institutions, and the 2025 figures, with 3 Cambridge and 5 Oxford offers from a cohort of under 100, keep the trend intact. For families judging a sixth form on where it can realistically take a capable child, that consistency is the number that matters most.
Families can weigh these outcomes against other providers using the FindMySchool local hub comparison tool, which sets sixth-form destinations side by side, and can shortlist the college to revisit alongside alternatives. The picture that emerges is consistent: this is a college whose entire purpose is measured at the point students leave, and by that measure it performs.
Entry is selective and unapologetically academic. Candidates sit scholarship and entrance assessments in their chosen A-level subjects, complete an online reasoning test and an interview, and submit school reports, so an offer reflects demonstrated ability rather than where a family lives. There is no catchment in the conventional sense. With most students boarding and many joining from overseas, the college recruits internationally rather than from a local intake, and applications are handled directly by the college rather than through a local authority.
The principal entry point is Year 12, at age 16, into a two-year A-level programme, though the registered age range runs from 14 to 19. Places are limited by the college's small capacity of roughly 110, so early enquiry matters, particularly for international families who need to arrange boarding, guardianship and visas alongside admission. Because the same assessments that decide entry also determine scholarship awards, strong candidates have a clear incentive to prepare thoroughly and apply early. The college assesses subject knowledge, reasoning and prior attainment together, so an applicant is judged on genuine academic potential rather than on a single test on a single day. Prospective parents should confirm current assessment dates and deadlines directly with the college, as these move from year to year and international admissions can run on a rolling basis rather than to a single national timetable.
For a college where most students live on site, often a long way from home, pastoral structure carries real weight, and the college has invested in it as the roll has grown. Students enjoy positive relationships with staff, feel safe and report no issues with bullying, and Ofsted judged safeguarding effective. An on-site medical centre provides day-to-day health care with a designated sick bay for students who fall ill during the day, and a wellbeing counsellor and expanded welfare team support boarders through the residential week.
Managing workload is treated as part of wellbeing rather than separate from it. The college maintains a Wellbeing Hub, an online resource covering sleep hygiene, self-care, mindfulness, healthy eating and staying safe online, aimed squarely at helping students handle a demanding timetable. Given how intense the academic day is, that emphasis on rest and balance is well placed, and the growth in welfare staffing as the college expanded shows the provision scaling deliberately with the size of the community rather than lagging behind it.
Boarding is central here rather than optional: around 85% of students board, and the residential community is genuinely international, spanning 43 nationalities. Accommodation is organised across three boarding blocks in three formats to suit different preferences. Cluster rooms house four to six students, each with a single ensuite bedroom plus a shared kitchen and lounge, which suits students who want company close by. Apartments offer two bedrooms with a shared bathroom, kitchen and lounge. Studio flats provide a single ensuite room with its own kitchen for students who prefer more independence and privacy, a useful option for older students easing towards university living.
The residential offer has been built out rapidly since the campus opened. As the college expanded towards its full capacity, it added boarding facilities including catering, a medical room and wellbeing support, created dedicated welfare staffing, and moved the boarding leadership into a full-time role. Life is structured around the boarding houses, which double as the framework for competitions and community events through the year. Day places do exist, and a local student can attend without boarding, but the centre of gravity is firmly residential. Prospective families should picture a boarding college with a small day cohort attached, not a day school that happens to offer rooms, and should factor in the exeat and travel implications that come with an international, term-time-resident community.
The wider programme is organised around a house system, with students grouped into residential houses named Franklin, Morgan, Wallace, Seacole and Parry that run inter-house competitions across the year. Set-piece events give the calendar its shape and a distinct identity. The Eisteddfod, the college's Welsh cultural celebration of singing, music and poetry, is performed at St David's Hall and carries the heritage of the founding Cardiff college into Cambridge. A Glee musical theatre production is staged by a student-led ensemble under a professional director. A student-run TEDx, launched in 2022, brings live speakers to a local audience. A Sports Day at a local stadium and a black-tie Cultural Event, an awards ceremony celebrating the college's 43 nationalities, round out the year.
Clubs lean academic, as the intake would suggest, and there are many of them for so small a college. Alongside Model United Nations, a Philosophy Society, Debating and a Programming club, students can join Medical Science, Medical Ethics, Engineering, NASA and Economics societies, with Law, Entrepreneurship and a Creative Writing group widening the range. A Duke of Edinburgh Award and an ACE volunteering initiative add a service dimension, while Book, Film, Photography, Cooking, K-Pop and Meditation clubs give the week some lightness. Sport and recreation run through Football, Basketball, Badminton, Netball and Table Tennis.
Honesty is due here. Physical and creative education are less developed than the formidable academic core, with limited opportunities for students to pursue talents outside their chosen subjects and limited evening and weekend access to sport and the arts. Leaders have plans to restructure the school day and strengthen this wider offer, but as things stand the co-curricular programme supports the academic mission rather than rivalling the breadth of a large all-round school. Families who place a high value on serious sport, art or music alongside academics should ask directly how far those plans have progressed.
Fees are among the highest in the country and reflect the small-group teaching and full-service boarding. For 2026-27, day study is £31,050 per year and full boarding in the college's cluster accommodation is £74,900 per year, both inclusive of VAT. These are premium figures, and families should weigh them against the very specific academic return the college is designed to deliver rather than against a conventional all-round independent school.
Financial support is primarily merit-based. Scholarships worth up to 50% of tuition fees are awarded on the strength of subject scholarship exams, an interview, an online reasoning test and school reports, so an academically strong candidate can reduce the cost substantially. It is worth being precise about the distinction: these are scholarships, rewarding ability, rather than means-tested bursaries that assess family income. Income-assessed bursary provision is less prominent in the college's published information, so families who would need support based on financial circumstances rather than results should confirm directly what, if anything, is available before committing to the process.
Fees shown include VAT. Published.
The college sits on Regent Street in central Cambridge, a short walk from the city centre and well served by Cambridge railway station for students travelling in and by rail from London and further afield. As a small, boarding-led A-level college, it does not run the wraparound or nursery care of a family school; the working pattern is a full academic day that students themselves describe as demanding, softened by boarding routines and welfare support in the evenings. Specific coach or shuttle arrangements are not published in the college's public information, so day families and those organising transfers to and from airports or stations should confirm travel options directly with the admissions team when they apply.
Fees are exceptional. Full boarding runs to £74,900 per year and day study to £31,050 for 2026-27. Even with scholarships of up to 50% of tuition, this is a substantial commitment, and the return is concentrated in academic and university outcomes rather than breadth of experience.
The curriculum is deliberately narrow. Strength is banked in the sciences, mathematics and computing, and physical and creative education are less developed. Students who want a broad mix of arts, humanities and sport, or who are undecided about their direction, may find the offer too focused.
The pace is intense. Students describe the day as tiring, and the model is built for driven learners aiming at the most competitive courses. It suits some temperaments far better than others, and a student who needs a gentler environment could struggle.
It is small, young and international. The Cambridge campus opened only in 2022, the roll is under 100, and most students board, many from overseas. Families seeking a large, long-established or locally rooted community should factor that in before applying.
Cardiff Sixth Form College, Cambridge does one thing and does it to an elite standard: it moves academically ambitious students into the most competitive universities and courses in the country. A place in the top 1.3% of schools in England for A-level results, a decade of Oxbridge offers, and small specialist classes back that up, as do national awards for A-level teaching. The trade-offs are equally clear: very high fees, a narrow STEM-weighted curriculum, an intense day, and a small, largely international boarding community whose wider co-curricular life is still developing. It is best suited to focused, high-achieving students, especially those aiming at medicine, engineering, the sciences or Oxbridge, who will flourish in an international boarding environment built squarely around results. Families wanting breadth, a large peer group, or a local day-school feel should look elsewhere.
Yes, on academic measures it is among the strongest in England. It ranks 33rd of 2,562 schools in England for A-level results, the top 1.3%, with A* awarded in more than 40% of entries and 78% of grades at A* or A. Ofsted rated it Good in 2023 and judged safeguarding effective, praising a buzz of intellectual curiosity. The main considerations are its very high fees, narrow STEM focus and intense pace.
They are exceptional. A* accounts for 40.6% of entries, A*-A reaches 78% against an England average of 23.6%, and 95.5% of grades fall between A* and B. That performance places the college 33rd of 2,562 in England for A-level results and 3rd among sixth-form providers in Cambridge.
For 2026-27, day study is £31,050 per year and full boarding is £74,900 per year, both inclusive of VAT. Scholarships worth up to 50% of tuition fees are available on the basis of subject exams, an interview, an online reasoning test and school reports, which can reduce the cost for strong candidates.
The college is boarding-led: around 85% of students board, drawn from 43 nationalities, with a smaller number of day places. Accommodation ranges from cluster rooms with single ensuite bedrooms and shared kitchens to two-bedroom apartments and independent studio flats across three boarding blocks.
In 2025, 55% of leavers took up Russell Group places and 33% went to the G5 group of Oxbridge, Imperial, UCL and the LSE. Over the past decade the college's students have gained 45 places at Cambridge and 20 at Oxford, including 3 Cambridge and 5 Oxford offers in 2025.
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