The academic progress made by our Sixth Formers makes us the top performing school in Berkshire, and puts us in the top 1% of schools in England. We are one of only 8 schools in England to have always been in the top 100.
Our A Level students achieved 74% A*-B. in Summer 2024. Find out more about our A Level Programme.
Our International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) students gained an average score 36 points in Summer 2025, against a pass mark of 24 and 6 points higher than the global average, achieving some highly impressive university places.
In recent years, our students have gone on to Oxbridge, medical degrees, art colleges, music conservatoires and many leading UK and international universities.
We like to think that our Sixth Form is different to most. We’ll do all we can to encourage and support your goals, but we’ll also give you a certain amount of freedom to do it your way. This makes us a bit more like a university campus – and it works, with our students achieving some of the very best academic progress in England.
Students are given close support by their academic tutors, with our tutor groups smaller than most schools and students seeing their tutors twice every day.
Our new Sixth Form Study Centre and School Library developed an historic building designed by one of the UK’s most celebrated Victorian architects, Alfred Waterhouse, and infused it with beautiful study spaces and cutting-edge learning technology.
Our students already achieve the best academic progress in Berkshire – so we’re excited to see what you can do with a brand-new study centre, with every detail designed to support your success.
We’ll support you to harness your innate inner-drive to achieve the very best you can.
Leighton Park Sixth Formers achieve the best academic progress in Berkshire, with the School in the top 14 boarding schools in England. We are one of only eight schools to have always been in the top 100 performing schools in England in the UK Government’s value add analysis – but we are no academic hot house.
We achieve this through exceptional teaching in small classes, fun and engaging lessons and a holistic approach to support personal development as well as academic progress. Above all, we’ll support you to really think about what you want to achieve, foster your inner drive and help you find purpose in your learning.
We believe that achievement shines brightest when it spans across the different facets of a student’s character and when if flows from your deep desire to develop and grow.
You are unique, with your own interests, approaches to learning and strengths. We offer the IB Diploma Programme as well as A Levels to enable you to choose the programme that will best suit your needs and goals. The attributes listed below are a good guide to which programme might suit you best – which one do you resonate with? If you’re still not sure, get in touch and we’ll be happy to guide you.
IB Diploma student • You have broad interests and like working on projects • You are interested in global perspectives and culture • You don’t want to narrow your options down at this stage of your education • You want to have more contact time with teachers • You like the interdisciplinary nature of the IB Diploma and the opportunity to explore open-ended questions with more scope for creative thinking • You enjoy that you can gain credits for your co-curricular activities • You relish the prospect of being part of an international programme, having friends from different countries and being part of a cosmopolitan cohort • You’re excited that 97% of university admissions officers rate the IB Diploma as the best preparation for university.
A Level student • You have refined your interests into specific subjects and want to focus on these • You prefer to be assessed in exams rather than coursework and feel confident that you can cope with that pressure • You enjoy that the A Level syllabus is more defined and that subjects are studied independently of each other • You have a clear idea of what you want to do after school • You are interested in undertaking the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) as an opportunity to work independently and focus on a topic that really fascinates you • You feel that you have excellent time management skills to use study periods effectively.
We lead the UK for our approach to preparing you for a fast-changing world. As winners of the Independent Schools Association (ISA) Award for Future Readiness 2024-25, we empower you to think critically and solve problems with imagination, preparing you for the complex challenges of the future workplace – and with the skills to thrive in the world you will inherit.
We combine critical thinking with creativity and innovation – all in real-world, interdisciplinary learning. You will gain the skills to understand the complex problems you see around you in the world and the tools to work with others to create solutions – everything you need, in short, to be changemakers.
We do this through an innovative educational approach that extends beyond the traditional curriculum.
Leighton Park is the only school in England to have been recognised by the Independent Schools Inspectorate as having a Significant Strength for our values-led approach. We distinguish ourselves by giving our Quaker values currency and purpose.
Simplicity, truth, respect, integrity, peace, equality and sustainability underpin, and are obvious in, our working practice, personal relationships and daily life, as well as informing our curriculum.
Leighton Park leads the UK for its work with the local community. Examples include a Maths Mentoring partnership with the Royal Institution, our Sports Leaders’ Award and Literacy Ambassadors programme. You will benefit from leadership opportunities and the proven boost to personal wellbeing from helping other people, and have some excellent skills to highlight in your UCAS personal statement or to future employers.
By joining an International Baccalaureate World School, you will benefit from a cosmopolitan, international and inclusive learning environment with students from 47 different countries, whether you take the IB Diploma or A Levels programme.
One of our values is Peace and we believe that taking the time to understand and appreciate different cultures is a prerequisite for a peaceful and prosperous future. You will also have the opportunity to go on amazing international trips, whether related to your academic subjects, co-curricular interests, Sports or Music tours.
We’re often asked what we do to support our students to achieve some of the best academic progress in the UK. The answer is simple but the implementation is less so. You will benefit from an education that is built around your needs and learning style:
You will have access to over 90 co-curricular clubs, as well as take part in games twice a week in Sixth Form. This reflects the importance we place on balance and developing every aspect of our students. It may seem counterintuitive but our approach has demonstrated that the way to support you to achieve your best possible academic progress is by combining study with wider opportunities for personal development, fun and self-reflection. We won the ISA’s Award for Excellence in Pupil Personal Development in 2022 for our approach.
There is a huge range of choice, enabling you to build your own unique programme – to learn new skills, stretch yourself and make friends for life. Of the 90 co-curricular activities around 30 are related to music and performing arts, 30 to sports and 30 to academic extension like debating and coding club.
Our Sixth Formers have the opportunity to lead co-curricular activities in the School, with current examples including Amicus, our student-led charity, Amnesty International and our Sixth Form Eco Group. • 90+ co-curricular clubs • Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme • Sport (nearly 30 options) • Leadership and mentoring • Music, Dance and Drama • Academic extension • Student-led charity
The starting point at Leighton Park is supporting you to think about who you are, to reflect on what is important to you and to help you find purpose in your learning. Our orientation programme and bespoke Newcomers’ Day help you get up to speed quickly and feel settled. You will have the chance to go on a weekend adventure trip to the Isle of Wight at the end of your first week or two at School.
Your tutor will be there to support you to achieve your very best every step of the way, in both academic progress and personal development. The small tutor groups of only 11 students mean you get close individual support and you will see your tutor every day. With this close level of support, you will have the space and personal responsibility to take charge of your learning within a supportive environment with expert advice.
Our House system gives everyone a team to be part of – with fun events, student socials and competitions to ensure that everybody in the School feels part of a vibrant community.
There are five teachers that live in each boarding house, meaning there is always someone around to help.
Our students go on to some of the most sought after university programmes in the country with our Aspiring High Programme offering dedicated support, including comprehensive pathways for Oxbridge, Medicine, Law and overseas universities. Our brilliant Careers Department will be there to help you, whatever direction you want to take – drawing on the expertise of our Old Leightonian community to give you advice and tailored interview practice.
Most of our students will go to Russell Group universities but some will be best served at specialist institutions like St George’s for Medicine, the University of Lancaster for Space Science, Central St Martin’s for the arts and the country’s leading conservatoires for music. We’ve got the expertise to support you every step of the way – no matter which path you choose.
Selected student destinations this year
The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is an excellent programme for students who love learning and whose interests span across the academic spectrum. It also suits students who don’t want to narrow their options down at this stage.
Find out more about the IB Diploma Programme
A Levels are ideal if you excel in particular subjects and want to focus on these.
Find out more about the A Level programme
Use this course finder to explore the different options available at Leighton Park in the Sixth Form and see details of each subject’s syllabus. Alternatively, you can browse all our courses our Sixth Form prospectus.
Subjects do change over time and courses will usually only run if there are at least five students in the class.
We’re a selective Sixth Form, so you’ll need:
Find out how to make an application
Austin Bursary Awards are available for Sixth Form students with particular academic ability and/or musical talent. These awards are means-tested and usually cover between 80-100% of the day fee for the two years of the Sixth Form. Eligibility criteria include:
Find out more on our Bursaries page.
The Oakleaf Diploma is our personal development programme in Lower Sixth. It provides opportunities for you to take your skills to the next level, forge lifelong friendships, as well as giving you the time and space to destil your sense of purpose.
The four key elements of the Diploma are:
Sixth Form at Leighton Park is all about you. You’re able to choose between A Levels or the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) and there are also a lot of subject choices in each programme. Our course finder lets you search or browse our different subjects and these videos let you learn more – straight from our teachers and students.
Our Psychology video is featured here but click the link below to see more.
Day 1: The Sports Tour began with an early meet at Heathrow Terminal 3 before the group boarded their Virgin Atlantic flight. Thanks to a strong tailwind, the eventful flight … Read More +
Congratulations to our Class of 2025 International Baccalaureate Diploma cohort! Students were celebrating the culmination of their two years of hard work and dedicated effort as the results of this globally … Read More +
Six schools joined forces to create a Model United Nations event on Monday 23rd June discussing the challenging topic, ‘What can the United Nations do to ensure Global Security in … Read More +
Take the next step by selecting an option below, or if you want to drop us a quick message, you can do so with the form.
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