Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking, or plan to take, to combat educational underachievement; in particular, amongst groups of pupils within society with low academic attainment.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.

The government is committed to improving outcomes for all pupils. This will be achieved through the actions set out in the Schools White Paper to realise our ambition for 90% of children to leave primary school having achieved the expected standard in Key Stage 2 reading, writing and maths, and that in secondary schools, the national GCSE average grade in both English language and in maths will increase from 4.5 in 2019 to 5, both by 2030.

The Schools White Paper outlines further actions to support schools and pupils. This includes an ambitious and stretching curriculum and improving behaviour and attendance levels. To underpin these reforms, the department will continue to work with schools, trusts, local authorities, and dioceses to build a stronger, fairer school system.

The Levelling Up White Paper, published in February 2022, also sets out a mission to raise attainment in 55 Education Investment Areas, with a particular focus on 24 Priority Education Investment Areas which have experienced sustained educational underperformance.

The department knows that reforms we have overseen so far are delivering improvements. The proportion of schools now rated by Ofsted as Good or Outstanding has risen from 68% in 2010 to 88% in 2022.

In the 2022 Autumn Statement, it was announced that the overall schools funding will increase by a further £2 billion in the 2023/24 financial year and another £2 billion in the 2024/25 financial year, over and above totals confirmed in the 2021 Autumn Budget and Spending Review.

The department knows that disadvantaged children and those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are disproportionately represented in those cohorts not meeting expected standards. The Pupil Premium helps fund evidence-based, targeted interventions, as well as broader improvements that will benefit these pupils and help to raise their attainment. Additional support also includes the National Tutoring Programme, where funding has been allocated to schools based on rates of disadvantage. Over two million tuition courses have started since 2020, and six million courses will be delivered by 2024.

The department is also reforming the SEND and Children’s Social Care systems, spending £2.6 billion in high needs capital funding over the next three years to deliver new places and improve existing provision for children and young people with SEND, or those requiring alternative provision.