Half of academies sponsored by grammar schools need improvement

Government data has revealed that half of academies sponsored by grammar schools are rated as requiring improvement or inadequate.

This raises concerns over how effective government plans are to open more selective schools.

The statistics show that eight of 18 schools sponsored by grammar schools that have been inspected were rated as requires improvement, and two were named inadequate.

Seven were rated good and one rated outstanding.

However, when releasing the data, Nick Gibb, the school's minister, noted that the “vast majority” of the grammar school-sponsored institutions included in the data “were previously underperforming”.

Of the 32 grammar-sponsored schools in the country, 14 are still awaiting a grade.