Northern pupils face poverty and poor schools in regional divide

POOR schools and deprivation are putting children in northern England at a disadvantage compared with those in the South, according to a report.

The disparity is a result of resources being too narrowly focused on London at the expense of other needy areas, the study by the Children’s Commissioner said.

Anne Longfield pointed out that a disadvantaged child in Hackney in the capital is three times more likely to go to university than one in Hartlepool.

Two decades ago London had some of the worst schools in the country but after a campaign to attract better teachers, it is now a top performer.

Mrs Longfield called for greater investment for struggling families and a scheme to boost teacher recruitment in the North to end the regional imbalance. ‘While many children in the North are thriving, there are huge gaps between the poorest northern kids and those in the South,’ she said.

‘Too many children in the North are facing the double whammy of entrenched deprivation and poor schools. They are being left behind. We need to ask why a child from a lowincome family in London is three times more likely to go to university than a child who grows up in Hartlepool.’

She called on the Government to make schools a central part of the Northern Powerhouse project, which aims to boost economic growth in the North.

‘If the North is to flourish it needs to grow and retain the talents of all its children and truly offer the opportunities in life they hope for,’ she said.

The commissioner’s report is based on 12 months of research involving schools, businesses, councils and charities. It said London children on free school meals – the Government indica- tion of deprivation – are 40 per cent more likely to achieve a good maths and English GSCE than similar children in the North.

More than half of the schools serving the North’s most deprived communities are rated worse than ‘good’ by Ofsted.

The report said these schools endure weak leadership and difficulties recruiting staff. It warned too many children start school far behind where they should be, often with special educational needs that have not been picked up. And it said large numbers of children drop out of education before they reach 18.

Among the report’s recommendations are making it a priotity to improve the North’s secondary schools in the most deprived areas, with a renewed focus on teacher recruitment and leadership. Mrs Longfield said each local area should be required to have a plan to ensure children are in apprenticeships, training or education until the age of 18.

A Government spokesman said: ‘Our Northern Powerhouse programme includes £3.4billion investment in projects to boost the local economy, £12million to spread good teaching practice in English…and schemes that help families to support their child’s education at home.’

‘They are being left behind’