Secondary schools in the South perform better than other parts of England
What was claimed
There are fewer good schools in the Midlands and North of England compared to the South.
Our verdict
That’s correct according to Ofsted ratings. There’s a small North-South divide in the percentage of primary schools rated “good” or “outstanding”, and a significant one when it comes to secondary schools.
“If you live in the Midlands or the North, you have less chance of attending a good school than children in the South.”
Theresa May, 5 October 2016
This is correct according to school inspectors Ofsted. There’s only a slight difference for primary schools but a significant one when it comes to secondary schools.
The head of Ofsted, Sir Michael Wilshaw, said late last year that “there’s a growing divide between the performance of secondary schools in London and the South, and the performance of secondary schools in the Midlands and the North”.
Ofsted rates schools one of “outstanding”, “good”, “requires improvement” or “inadequate”.
Some 83% of secondary schools in the South inspected by Ofsted have been rated “good” or “outstanding” compared to 72% of secondary schools in the North and Midlands.
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For primary schools, the equivalent figures are 89% for the North and Midlands, and 90% for the South.
Image courtesy of James S Clay
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