Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

GCSE and A-Level Top Grades

Monday 6 September 2021 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Gill Furniss asked about the variation in top grades awarded to students from different types of schools in 2021.
  • The minister noted variations between types of schools but highlighted that before the pandemic, attainment gaps were closing.
  • Gill Furniss pointed out that the attainment gap between the richest and poorest students has widened since 2019.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Gill Furniss Lab Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough
Education
Context

There is a concern about the variation in top grade awards between private, free, and state schools. The questioner asks for an assessment on these variations.

Question

What assessment he has made of the variation in the proportion of top grades awarded for GCSEs and A-levels between (a) private, (b) free and (c) other state schools in 2021?

Answer from Nick Gibb

We saw success this year for young people from all types of school who were aiming for top grades. Every year there are variations between types of school; as I said earlier, before the pandemic we were closing attainment gaps and we will redouble our efforts through our catch-up plans and broader work to level up.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The variation in top grade awards between private, free, and state schools was not specifically addressed with concrete figures or commitments.

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Q2 Gill Furniss Lab Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough
Education
Context

Since 2019, GCSE students on free school meals have fallen behind their peers by almost a third. The questioner expresses concern about this issue affecting pupils in her constituency.

Question

On this Government's watch the attainment gap between the richest and poorest students has rocketed. Since 2019 alone, GCSE students on free school meals have fallen behind their peers by almost a third. This adversely affects pupils in my constituency of Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough, who are significantly more likely to receive free school meals. When will the Minister ditch this empty rhetoric and step up to the plate to resolve the fundamental underlying issues?

Answer from Nick Gibb

We totally understand the challenges many young people have faced during the pandemic. Up until the pandemic we had closed the attainment gap between disadvantaged children and their peers by 13% in primary school and 9% in secondary school, and the hon. Lady ought to look back at the Labour record we inherited in 2010. We accept, however, the challenges faced by young people during the pandemic, which is why we are committing £3 billion to catch-up funding and introducing a tuition revolution with 100 million hours of small group tuition for young people, because this Government will do everything we can to ensure that children can catch up from any lost education they have suffered during the pandemic.

Answered
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