Many of the biggest challenges facing the education system – including absence, disengagement and SEND – are complex, interrelated and are shaped by socioeconomic circumstance. The government’s schools white paper, Every Child Achieving and Thriving, has committed to halving the disadvantage gap, heightening the need for robust evidence on when and how inequalities emerge and evolve.
Growing apart: the evolution of the disadvantage gap provides the most comprehensive examination to date of the socioeconomic attainment gap in England, tracking educational inequalities from the Early Years Foundation Stage (age 5) through Key Stage 2 (age 11) and Key Stage 4 (age 16) to 16-19 education. Drawing on this four-phase analysis, the research addresses two fundamental questions: which specific factors are associated with lower attainment for disadvantaged children and young people, and whether the gap is driven more by who pupils are, or where they learn and live.
