How the League Table works
The whole point of this table is that it is independent and checkable. Here is the entire method — data sources, formula, and the honest limitations.
The data
- Ofsted gradescome from Ofsted's published further education & skills inspection outcomes. We use the latest overall effectiveness judgement (Outstanding / Good / Requires improvement / Inadequate). Ofsted has since moved to report-card style inspections, so we show each provider's inspection date and treat not-yet-graded providers as unranked, never as zero.
- Achievement ratescome from the Department for Education's published apprenticeship National Achievement Rate Tables. We use each provider's overall rate for the 2023/24 academic year — the percentage of apprentices reaching their planned end date who completed and passed. The previous year is shown as a trend.
- Cohort size is the number of apprentices included in that rate, rounded to the nearest 10 by the DfE. We always show it: 95% from 600 learners is not the same evidence as 100% from 10.
The formula
League score = 0.5 × achievement rate + 0.5 × Ofsted points, where Ofsted points are Outstanding = 100, Good = 75, Requires improvement = 40, Inadequate = 0. Providers are ranked by score; ties break towards the larger cohort. A provider is ranked only if it has both an Ofsted grade and a published 2023/24 achievement rate — currently 995 providers. The remaining 443 are listed unranked with the reason stated.
By default the table shows providers with a cohort of at least 100; smaller providers are one click away and labelled, because tiny cohorts produce noisy rates.
What this table is not
- No provider pays to appear, move up, or be featured. There is no commercial input to the ranking.
- We display Ofsted's published data; we are not Ofsted and are not endorsed by Ofsted or the Department for Education.
- A rank is evidence, not a verdict. A Good provider with a rising 70% rate may be a better bet than an Outstanding one falling through 55% — the table shows you both numbers so you can judge.