Regional gaps

 

Looking across all phases of education, London continues to outperform the rest of the country for its disadvantaged students in 2023. The disadvantage gap in London has increased since 2019 among children in early years and primary school and flat-lined or decreased among older students (secondary school and 16-19 education). The West Midlands ranks as the region with the second smallest disadvantage gap in 2023 in three out of four key stages. The West Midlands was also one of the regions least affected in the wake of the pandemic across all four phases.

Early years foundation stage

Nationally, the disadvantage gap at the end of reception was 4.6 months in 2023, an increase of 0.4 months since 2019. London outperformed the rest of the country, with its disadvantaged pupils at the end of reception only 3.4 months behind their peers. The second smallest gap was in the West Midlands, with its disadvantaged pupils 4.2 months behind their peers. The South West, the East of England, and the North West had the largest gaps, respectively at 5.3, 5.2, and 5.1 months. When comparing these figures to 2019, the most recent pre-pandemic year, the East Midlands stood out as the one region to have seen its gap reduce (by 0.2 months). On the other hand, London has seen the biggest increase in the gap amongst regions since 2019 (+0.8 months).

Primary school

Nationally, disadvantaged students at the end of primary school were 10.3 months behind their peers in 2023, a whole month increase since 2019. As at reception year, London remains the region with the smallest disadvantage gap, with the difference between London’s gap and other regions’ widening between the ages of 5 and 11. Disadvantaged pupils in London were 6.3 months behind their peers, followed by the North East and the West Midlands, where the gap was 9.5 and 9.8 months respectively. The South East (with a gap of 12.3 months) and the South West (12.2 months) were the regions with the largest gaps in 2023. They were also the regions which have seen the biggest increase in the gap compared with pre-pandemic levels, with the gap in the South East increasing by 1.6 months since 2019, and the one in the South West increasing by 1.2 months. The West Midlands experienced the smallest increase in the gap (+0.2 months), meaning that no region has seen the disadvantage gap at the end of primary school reduce since 2019.

Secondary school

Nationally, the disadvantage gap widens as pupils progress through schooling, reaching 19.2 months at the end of secondary school in 2023, an increase of over a month since 2019. The gap between London and other regions also widens even further by the time pupils sit their GCSEs, with the next smallest disadvantage gap, in the West Midlands, being 19.3 months, compared to 10.4 months in London. The South East was the region with the largest disadvantage gap in 2023 (22.3 months). All other regions had similar disadvantage gaps, ranging from 21.2 to 21.7 months. London was also the only region whose gap did not increase compared to pre-pandemic levels, with the gap being virtually unchanged since 2019. In addition to having the largest gap, the South East had also experienced the most sizeable increase, with the gap growing by 1.7 months.

16-19 education

The gap between disadvantaged students and their peers nationally at the end of their 16-19 education in 2023 was 3.2 grades—unchanged since 2019. Once again, London had the smallest gap (1.4 grades), followed by the West Midlands (3.2 grades). On the other hand, the North East and the South West had the largest gaps in 2023, with disadvantaged students 4.2 grades behind their peers in both regions. Looking at changes since 2019, 16-19 education has been less negatively affected than earlier phases, with four out of nine regions having managed to reduce the disadvantage gap. The East Midlands and London, which have both seen their gap reduce by 0.3 grades, are the regions where we see the biggest improvements compared to prior to the pandemic. Conversely, the North West (+0.2 grades) is the region where the gap has increased the most.