Written question asked by Keith Vaz (Labour) on Monday, 18 January 2010, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 20 January 2010. It was answered by Lord Coaker (Labour) on Tuesday, 2 February 2010 on behalf of the Department for Children, Schools and Families.

GCSE

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many schools in (a) Leicester, (b) the East Midlands and (c) England did not meet the Government's target for GCSE examination passes in the latest period for which figures are available.

Answer: The National Challenge seeks to ensure that by 2011, at least 30 per cent. of pupils in every school achieve five GCSEs at grades A*-C including English and mathematics. As listed in the achievement and attainment tables, the 2009 GCSE results show that (a) three schools in Leicester, (b) 25 schools in the East Midlands and (c) 247 schools in England were below this 30 per cent. benchmark. These results confirm that (a) one school in Leicester, (b) 22 schools in the East Midlands and (c) 207 schools in England have risen above 30 per cent. since 2008.

Secondary information