Poorer children succeed in Hammersmith and Fulham
Wednesday January 18, 2012
Pupils from low income families in Hammersmith & Fulham are likely to get better GCSE results than children elsewhere.
According to new research carried out by the think tank CentreForum, 56 per cent of pupils from lower income groups in the borough achieve five GCSEs A* to C including English and maths, the sixth highest number for any local authority in the country.
Cllr Helen Binmore, H&F’s cabinet member for children’s services, says: “Education is the single most important factor in giving future generations a hand up to succeed in life. Children in H&F schools come from a huge range of backgrounds and we have a high proportion of pupils from low income families.
“Thirty one per cent of pupils qualify for free school meals compared to 15 per cent nationally.
“It is a huge credit to the schools in Hammersmith & Fulham that less well-off pupils do better than they do in other parts of the country. The explanation for their exceptional performance lies in the expectation in all our schools that pupils will do well, whatever their family circumstances.”
Tim Leunig, reader in economic history at the London School of Economics who is leading the study at the think tank CentreForum, presented preliminary findings at a recent meeting in Leeds which identified pupils from the poorest 20 per cent of households nationally and analysed their 2009 GCSE results.
While 48 per cent in all income groups gained at least five GCSEs at grade C or above, the figure fell to just 32 per cent for Leunig’s sample.
In six London boroughs more than half of children from the lowest-income group gained the five GCSE grades. In cities such as Newcastle upon Tyne, Sheffield and Leeds, the figure was below 25 per cent. In Knowsley, Merseyside, only 19 per cent in the poorest group achieved at least five Cs.
