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Written question asked by Philip Boswell (Scottish National Party) on Tuesday, 12 January 2016, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 14 January 2016. It was answered by Sam Gyimah (Conservative) on Tuesday, 19 January 2016 on behalf of the Department for Education.

Education: Equality

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the conclusions of the Social Market Foundation report, published in January 2016, Educational Inequalities in England and Wales.

Answer

The government is determined to deliver educational excellence everywhere so that every child, regardless of background, reaches their potential. Thanks to the hard work of teachers across the country and our ambitious programme of reforms, 1.4 million more pupils are in good or outstanding schools compared to 2010.

We believe that there is more that can be done. That is why we are introducing new measures to transform failing and coasting schools, funding the best academy chains to share excellence in the North and creating a National Teaching Service. This will send some of our best teachers to the areas that need them most, starting in the North West.

We have also protected the pupil premium at current rates for the duration of this Parliament, so that schools receive additional money for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds. A review of funding for disadvantaged pupils by the National Audit Office in July 2015 found that the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers has narrowed in both primary and secondary schools since the introduction of the pupil premium in 2011.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
22192
Session
2015-16
Subjects
Equality Education Social Market Foundation
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk