BRITAIN’S top eight schools get as many students into Oxford and Cambridge as three-quarters of all schools and colleges put together, a study has found.

The eight schools sent 1,310 pupils to the Russell Group universities over three years compared to 2,894 other schools that sent only 1,220 students between them, analysis by Sutton Trust revealed.

Over 40 per cent of places at Oxford and Cambridge go to independent school students, even though only 7 per cent of the general population attend private schools, the report found.

High levels of additional, specialist support at independent schools could explain why such a small number of institutions dominate Oxbridge admissions, the charity said.

Shadow education secretary Angela Rayner said: “This government has failed to take meaningful action to improve access and outreach to open up the privileged, closed club of our most selective universities.

“Access to education is a right, not a privilege, but the scrapping of maintenance grants and trebling of tuition fees has hit talented young people from disadvantaged backgrounds.”

Schools with similar exam results had very different rates of progression to top universities, and especially to Oxbridge, the study also found.

Almost a quarter of students in independent schools in the top fifth of schools for exam results applied to Oxbridge, but only 11 per cent of students in comprehensives in the same high-achieving group of schools did so.

The Sutton Trust said action was needed so all young people could access “high-quality personal guidance and support,” and called for a change in the admission process.