Disadvantaged pupils left behind as attainment gap widens post-Covid

A new report from the Institute for Government has revealed that England's schools, once a public service success story, are now grappling with widening educational inequalities in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The report, part of the Institute's Performance Tracker: Local series and supported by the Nuffield Foundation, shows that progress made between 2010 and 2019 in narrowing the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers has been largely reversed since the pandemic.

Analysing school performance at the local authority level between 2019 and 2024, the report finds that learning losses were most severe among disadvantaged pupils, particularly white pupils eligible for free school meals. In contrast, pupils in London continue to outperform their peers across the rest of the country, with the capital pulling further ahead since 2019.

Interestingly, some areas with higher concentrations of disadvantaged pupils still see strong performance, with outcomes that exceed the national average for better-off children. The report suggests that schools in these areas may be more adept at tailoring support to meet the needs of disadvantaged learners.

With the  government pledging to break the link between a child’s background and their future success, the findings offer both a warning and a roadmap. The authors stress that understanding where and why these disparities persist is crucial for any serious effort to close the attainment gap.

The report used three key metrics to assess school performance: attainment at the end of primary (Key Stage 2) and secondary school (Key Stage 4), and pupils’ academic progress between the two stages.