Over a third of London schools are seeing their pupils leave, obtaining less than five good A* to C-grade GCSEs.

According to the London Evening Standard, which cites figures from the Department for Education, more than 26,000 16-year-olds did not reach the basic benchmark of five A* to C-grade GCSEs including English and maths, which is the minimum many employers require, in the latest round of secondary school tests.

Despite this, the stats show that London schools are in fact some of the best performing in the country, with the capital above the rest of the UK when it comes to GCSE success.

Across the nation, the number of pupils studying in failing schools has dropped by 250,000 in the last four years, although there remain over 150 schools - totalling 120,000 pupils - that are still considered sub par.

In London, 35 per cent of school leavers failed to achieve five C-grade GCSEs, while in the UK the average is 41 per cent. Also, people in teaching jobs in London can take heart knowing the number of pupils getting the English Baccalaureate - which is awarded for passing GCSEs in five academic subjects - has shot up by seven per cent since 2012.

Further London-UK analysis shows that nationally, 154 secondary schools are not at the government’s basic level and risk being transformed into academies, while in the capital, only 32 schools could be labelled as failing to achieve this floor target.

In terms of pure GCSE results, Kensington and Chelsea was found to be England's best performing borough while regions such as Sutton, Bromley, Kingston and Barnet all achieved high places in the ranking lists. The best schools in 2013 were found to be Townley Grammar school and Chislehurst and Sidcup Grammar school in Bexley, Enfield's The Latymer School and Nonsuch High School for Girls in Sutton.