Pupils aged seven to 11 in Bath and North East Somerset who are on free school meals have the worst attainment in the country.
A report to the recent meeting of the council’s scrutiny panel said that in 2022-2023, pupils in B&NES attained higher grades compared to regional and national figures in all stages of education except Key Stage 2, which dropped below national figures for the first time since 2015/16.
Girls consistently performed better than boys at all key stages and the report says education outcomes in Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5 “are to be commended”.
The report adds: “However, the attainment gap between free school meal (FSM) and non-FSM pupils is consistently larger across all educational key stages in B&NES than the gap seen nationally.
“Nationally, the attainment gap widens as pupils move through the education system, whereas in B&NES, the attainment gap at EYFS is the largest, having increased sharply in 2022/23.
“Disappointingly, the Key Stage 2 attainment in the FSM cohort is the worst in the country and Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFS) attainment in the FSM cohort is the third worst in the country.
“However, when our FSM pupils are in secondary school, their Key Stage 4 attainment in 22/23 is broadly in line with national outcomes.”
The report to the panel also highlights that EYFS and Key Stage 2 attainment in B&NES is lowest with Black and other ethnic groups and below national levels.
It adds: “Key Stage 4 attainment and progress is lowest in the Black ethnic group and again is below national levels.
“Whilst numbers in these cohorts are relatively low, this is a trend seen for a number of years, particularly at Key Stages 2 and 4.”
The local authority continues to support initiatives with the St John’s Foundation across EYFS and Key Stage 2 and to work with the Department for Education South West Regions group to ensure that improving outcomes for this cohort of children remains a priority amongst schools, academies, and trusts.
The council also continues to work to improve education outcomes for Black and Ethnic Minority children and young people by delivering the B&NES Race Equality Charter Mark.
The council’s cabinet member for children’s services Cllr Paul May told the panel: “It’s not something to be proud of that we are now the worst in the country but it’s really important for us to actually recognise that the overall performance in education is absolutely superb in this area.”
He welcomed the support received from the St John’s Foundation and said talks with multi-academy trusts and the Schools Standards Board were due to take place. He added that the DfE has developed an Area Plan in an attempt to promote greater engagement.
The council’s director for education and safeguarding Chris Wilford said it was important to understand that 97% of schools are academies and so the council’s role is to influence, challenge and support.
Referring to the academic results for 2022/23 he said that they were broadly fantastic with only the Key Stage 2 results dropping below the national average.
He added that the quality of schools in B&NES is reflected in Ofsted ratings.
The panel noted pupils’ overall positive education performance in B&NES and members were assured that local authority officers continue to collaborate strategically with schools and partners and the regional director’s office to improve educational outcomes for all pupils.
The panel will receive a detailed report of the steps that are and will be taken to address the educational needs of ethnic minority and FSM pupils.
