Levelling Up in education “dead and buried”, says Labour after regional GCSE attainment gaps grow

Labour’s Shadow Education Secretary Bridget declared the Conservatives’ pledge to “level up” education “dead and buried” after the Schools Minister admitted that rising regional GCSE attainment gaps confirmed that the Conservatives’ agenda had “absolutely” failed.

Schools Minister Nick Gibb made the comments on BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme about the growing “disadvantage gap”. Analysis by Labour has uncovered the extent of growing regional divides in education attainment, finding that:

• Students in London were over 50% more likely to achieve a 7 (A grade) or higher in their GCSEs than students across the North and Midlands
• Merseyside saw fewest 16 year olds passing their maths GCSE with just 65% achieving a grade 4 compared to over 80% in Surrey or Hertfordshire
• Merseyside and the Isle of Wight saw lowest proportion of students achieving a pass in English, with fewer than two thirds of students achieving this standard compared to again 80+ % in Hertfordshire and Surrey
• For 2020/21 (last year for which data is available) a fifth of young people in the North East do not move into sustained education, employment or training after completing their studies, 40% higher than in outer London. The number not moving into a sustained destination has increased since 2017/18.

The gaps further entrench a gulf in attainment that evidence shows was growing before the pandemic. Research from EPI found that the disadvantage gap had stopped closing before the pandemic started, dealing a blow to the government’s pledge to “level up” education.

Labour has said that the failure of the Conservatives’ National Tutoring Programme, panned by its own recovery Tsar, as well as the Conservatives’ failure to deliver covid recovery schemes, lay behind the growing attainment gap.

Labour has pledged to drive high and rising standards in state schools as part of its mission to break down barriers to opportunity through recruitment of thousands more expert teachers, a revised curriculum with greater access to creative subjects and two weeks’ worth of work experience and expert careers advice to get young people ready for work and life.

Bridget Phillipson MP, Labour’s Shadow Education Secretary, said:

“The Schools Minister has confirmed that Conservative promises to level up education are dead and buried.

“Young people who have worked so hard are being let down by a government that has no interest in shrinking attainment gaps or raising education standards and a Prime Minister who seems to have more interest in supporting American private colleges than schools in this country.

“Labour is the party of high and rising standards in education. We will smash the class ceiling by improving young people’s school outcomes, building life skills and ensuring a broad and enriching education for every child.”

• Transcript of Nick Gibb comments on BBC Radio 4’sToday programme.

Mishal Hussain: Why has the disadvantage gaps as it’s called, the attainment gap. Why has it been widening? Isn’t that a failure of your levelling up agenda?

Nick Gibb: Absolutely. During the, no, during the COVID pandemic, we did see that, I mean undoubtedly disadvantaged children suffered disproportionately during that COVID pandemic, compared to their more advantaged peers.

Source: Today – 24/08/2023 – BBC Sounds; 2:28:55

·Students in London were over 50% more likely to achieve a 7 (A grade) or higher in their GCSEs than students across the North and Midlands

Merseyside saw fewest 16 year olds passing their maths GCSE with just 65% achieving a grade 4 compared to over 80% in Surrey or Hertfordshire

Merseyside and the Isle of Wight saw lowest proportion of students achieving a pass in English, with fewer than two thirds of students achieving this standard compared to again 80+ % in Hertfordshire and Surrey

Source: Guide to GCSE results for England, summer 2023 – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)