Fewer pupils achieve A-C passes third year in a row

Attainment in Higher exams has fallen for the third year in a row, new figures show.

Scottish Qualifications Authority statistics show A-C passes at Higher are down marginally by 0.2 per cent between 2017 and 2018.

National 5 qualifications have fallen 2.1 per cent while National 4 attainment has dropped 1.6 per cent.

The figures, updated from August to take account of issues such as appeals and late results, show there were 55,083 band A passes at Higher this year, 48,592 at B and 44,274 at C.

Scottish Labour said more education resources are needed to bolster attainment. The party’s education spokesman Iain Gray said: “The SNP should be utterly ashamed of these figures [and] young people are being failed.”