It’s famous as the home of Wembley and as the most ethnically-diverse area in the country. Now the London borough of Brent has been named as the ‘cleverest’ place in England – with more than five out of six school children going on to study for a degree at university.
A total of 7,272 students who went to local authority-maintained schools in the area between the 2015/16 and 2020/21 academic years went on to study a degree. That works out as 84% who completed their 16 to 18 study at a school in Brent. It’s the highest ratio of any council area in England, giving Brent a claim to be the country’s brightest town.
Brent has been identified as the most ethnically diverse area in the country by place of birth – only 43.9 per cent of people in the area were born in the UK, which is lower than any other local authority.
The borough has the highest proportion of Irish residents in the country and also large Indian, Brazilian and Afro-Caribbean communities. Famous former pupils of schools in Brent include George Michael, David Baddiel and Twiggy.
The London boroughs of Redbridge and Ealing aren’t far behind Brent though, with 83% of pupils having gone on to study a degree over the same time period.
Harrow and Kensington and Chelsea are next at 82% each, followed by Barnet at 80% then Merton, Sutton and Southwark at 80% each.
Rutland has the highest ratio outside of London (78%) followed by Buckinghamshire (77%), Reading (74%) and Buckinghamshire (74%).
Meanwhile, Trafford (73%) and Manchester (72%) have the highest ratios in the North.
You can see how your area compares by using our interactive map:
It comes as a list of the proportion and number of pupils currently eligible for free school meals in every local area of England has been released. The data is for January 2025 and has been published by the Department for Education. It is for upper-tier local authorities.
The figures range from nearly half of pupils in Manchester (47.2%) to around one in 10 in Wokingham in Berkshire (10.2%) and just 3% on the Isles of Scilly.
London boroughs dominate the top of the free school meals eligibility list, with Islington (45.8%), Hackney (45.0%) and Camden (44.8%) among the highest in England. Tower Hamlets (43.3%) and Westminster (42.1%) also rank in the top 10 nationally, highlighting persistent child poverty in the capital despite its overall wealth.
Lambeth (38.6%), Southwark (39.8%), and Newham (37.9%) also report significantly high levels of eligibility, indicating widespread need across inner London.
At the lower end, outer boroughs like Sutton (16.4%), Bromley (16.2%) and Richmond upon Thames (14.1%) show much lower rates, underscoring stark inequality within London’s education system.
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