PM: Pupils who fail the 3Rs at 11 will have to resit them at 12

THOUSANDS of children who fail maths and English tests in primary school will be forced by the Tories to resit them to ensure they can read, write and add up.

David Cameron will today announce that all children who do not pass the tests at 11 will have to retake them at 12 in the first year of secondary school.

The Department for Education says that of the 100,000 pupils – one in five – who fail to reach the expected standard in English and maths at 11, only 7 per cent go on to get five good GCSEs including English and maths – compared to 72 per cent of those who do make the grade.

The Prime Minister will say: ‘ The Conservatives are the union for parents. We represent every hardworking mother and father who wants to see their child succeed in a great school. These past five years have been about getting changes in place which stretch our children – and the results have been extraordinary. The next five will be about finishing the job. More discipline, more rigour, zero tolerance of failure and mediocrity. There’s hardly anything more important to our long-term economic plan for Britain.

‘There is no job that doesn’t require English and maths and this is about making sure every child gets the best start in life.’

Education Secretary Nicky Morgan said: ‘We know that the biggest predictor of success at GCSE is whether young people have mastered the basics at 11.

‘That means if we fail to get it right for young people at the start of secondary school they’ll struggle for the rest of their time in education. Under Labour one in three children left primary school unable to read, write and add up properly. Thanks to our reforms and teachers’ hard work we’ve seen that fall just to one in five.

‘But even one child falling behind, or being written off, is a child too many.’

Last night Tristram Hunt, Labour’s education spokesman, said: ‘This is desperate attempt by the Tories to try to overshadow their failures on school standards. On their watch, 1.6million pupils are being educated in schools that are rated lower than good by Ofsted.’

News of the planned resits came as it was revealed that the Tories were looking to give parents maths lessons in schools so they can help their children with homework. The Daily Telegraph reported that senior sources had said a Conservative government would consider a US- style scheme to offers lessons at parents’ evenings because so many adults struggle with modern maths curriculums.

‘Giving children the best start in life’