Tayport, #1 on this list · Photo: Scott Cormie · CC BY-SA 2.0

Fife rankings · Schools

Towns with the best schools in Fife

Tayport ranks first on schools among Fife’s 26 towns of 2,500+; 2 of the 26 grade A− or better against UK towns.

The School Grade (England only): Key Stage 2 and GCSE results of the state schools in the town (or within 3 km), weighted by pupils and measured against England’s schools. The rank across England sits beside each letter. How grades work

Tayport

3,967 people

Better than 85% of UK towns

Cairneyhill

2,657 people

A⁻

Better than 83% of UK towns

St Andrews

16,465 people

B⁺

Better than 72% of UK towns

All 26 towns, ranked

Schools grade, best first; ranks are the county ranks on each town’s page (T = tied). Military garrison towns and university campuses keep their grades but aren’t ranked. Each rank across England links to the national list.

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26 towns.

#TownGrade · UK rankCompared with UK towns

1Tayport3,967 peopleAbetter than 85% of UK towns

2Cairneyhill2,657 peopleA⁻better than 83% of UK towns

3St Andrews16,465 peopleB⁺better than 72% of UK towns

4Cupar8,835 peopleBbetter than 58% of UK towns

5Anstruther3,943 peopleBbetter than 56% of UK towns

6Rosyth13,309 peopleBbetter than 56% of UK towns

7Dunfermline56,053 peopleB⁻better than 51% of UK towns

T8Burntisland6,259 peopleB⁻better than 48% of UK towns

T8Kinghorn2,944 peopleB⁻better than 48% of UK towns

10Newport-on-Tay and Wormit4,119 peopleCbetter than 34% of UK towns

11Crossgates2,993 peopleCbetter than 32% of UK towns

T12Dalgety Bay and Hillend9,452 peopleCbetter than 28% of UK towns

T12Inverkeithing5,273 peopleCbetter than 28% of UK towns

T14Glenrothes37,466 peopleC⁻better than 20% of UK towns

T14Leslie2,888 peopleC⁻better than 20% of UK towns

16Kirkcaldy and Dysart51,135 peopleC⁻better than 15% of UK towns

17Kelty6,898 peopleDbetter than 14% of UK towns

18Kincardine2,887 peopleDbetter than 8% of UK towns

T19Cowdenbeath and Lumphinnans11,979 peopleDbetter than 6% of UK towns

T19Lochgelly7,157 peopleDbetter than 6% of UK towns

T21Ballingry5,823 peopleD⁻better than 2% of UK towns

T21Cardenden and Auchterderran5,266 peopleD⁻better than 2% of UK towns

T23Buckhaven4,413 peopleD⁻behind almost every UK town

T23Kennoway4,665 peopleD⁻behind almost every UK town

T23Leven10,088 peopleD⁻behind almost every UK town

T23Methil10,712 peopleD⁻behind almost every UK town

Quick answers

Questions people ask

Which town in Fife has the best schools?

Tayport ranks first on schools among 26 towns, with an A: better than 85% of UK towns. Cairneyhill and St Andrews follow.

How are these towns ranked?

The School Grade (England only): Key Stage 2 and GCSE results of the state schools in the town (or within 3 km), weighted by pupils and measured against England’s schools. The letter and rank are the same as on each town’s page. How grades work.

Why isn’t my town on this list?

Welsh towns have no School Grade: Wales doesn’t publish school-level results. Garrison towns and university campuses aren’t ranked, and towns without the figures this grade needs are counted above. The list covers Fife’s towns of 2,500+ with the figure. Smaller places show it on their own pages; every town in Fife is on the county page.

Go deeper

More Fife lists

Every list ranks the same 2,500+ towns, so a town’s rank means the same thing on each.

All Fife rankings →

Most affordable towns26 towns · #1 Methil Healthiest towns26 towns · #1 Dalgety Bay and Hillend Most walkable towns26 towns · #1 St Andrews Towns with the lowest flood risk26 towns · #1 Buckhaven and Crossgates Towns with the lowest council tax26 towns · #1 Anstruther and 25 moreDescribed, no letters Towns with the mildest winters26 towns · #1 AnstrutherDescribed, no letters Towns with the warmest summers26 towns · #1 Newport-on-Tay and WormitDescribed, no letters Towns with the coolest summers26 towns · #1 BallingryDescribed, no letters Towns with the fewest frosts26 towns · #1 AnstrutherDescribed, no letters Driest towns26 towns · #1 AnstrutherDescribed, no letters Wettest towns26 towns · #1 BallingryDescribed, no letters

Sources: DfE Get Information about Schools (16 October 2026), Key Stage 2 performance tables (2023–2025, three-year average) and Key Stage 4 (2025/26, provisional); Ofsted state-funded school inspections as at 30 September 2026 · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.