Praise for pupils but regional GCSE divide raises alarm

Today was the day where millions of anxious pupils found out their grades and  for Halton, it was a below average performance.

Across the North West,  nearly 19 per cent of students scored a grade seven or higher – an A or A* in traditional grades. In Halton that figure was 11 per cent. Liverpool was 17 per cent while Sefton was 16.5 per cent. In Halton, the figure dropped from 13.8 per cent last year.

The best performing area was the City of London on 72.1 per cent with most of the top performing councils being in London or the shires, with the exception of Trafford which finished in fifth place on 39 per cent. Wirral was the best performing area in the Liverpool City Region with 21 per cent of students making it to grade seven or higher, while 14 per cent achieved the same in St Helens.

The worst performing was Knowsley on 8.3 per cent, with Halton finishing third from bottom in the national table.

Benjamin Holmes, director of education, inclusion and provision at Halton Council, said: “Behind every grade is a tremendous amount of hard work, determination and resilience, and young people across our borough should be incredibly proud of all they have achieved.”

He added: “Whether students are celebrating results that met their expectations or considering the opportunities available to them following today’s results, I want them to know that there are many pathways to success. We are proud of every young person and wish them every success as they take their next steps towards a bright and exciting future.”

Councillor Pamela Wallace, Mayor of Halton, had been out and about visiting schools on results day.

She said: “The atmosphere was incredibly positive, and it was wonderful to meet so many young people as they received their results and looked ahead to the next stage of their journeys.”

Addressing the national picture, Lee Elliot Major, Professor of Social Mobility at the University of Exeter, called it a ‘damning indictment of 21st Century Britain’.

He said: “Something is fundamentally amiss when children with the same talents and potential face such different prospects simply because of where they happen to live.”