White working-class children failed by England’s school system, inquiry finds

Report says once-in-a-generation changes needed to tackle why such children are lowest-performing large demographic

The education system is “not set up to serve white working-class children and families”, an independent inquiry has concluded.

The Independent Inquiry into White Working-Class Educational Outcomes also determined that once-in-a-generation changes were needed to tackle why such children were the lowest-performing large demographic in England’s school system.

Welcoming the report, the eduction secretary, Bridget Phillipson, said white working-class children needed help in school and beyond after it also found they were about half as likely as their less disadvantaged peers to get GCSEs in maths and English.

The inquiry, which was commissioned by a schools academy trust but backed by the Department for Education (DfE), said the much-documented poorer performance by white working-class pupils could not be “solved by schools alone”.

Based on statistics for white students who received free school meals, a standard metric for deprivation, it found that in 2025, 36% of this cohort in England got a grade 4 or above in English and maths GCSE, compared with an average of 72% for all pupils who did not receive free school meals.

Co-chaired by Estelle Morris, a former Labour education secretary, and Hamid Patel, the chief executive of Star Academies, which commissioned the inquiry, the report said the issues identified could not be “explained away by low aspiration or lack of effort”.

Phillipson hailed the report as “a really important piece of work”. It was based on interview with thousands of young people and their parents, as well as hundreds of teachers.

Saying the matter was also a significant focus of the DfE’s schools white paper in February, she told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that one issue was school attendance.

She went on: “The report is also clear, and the evidence is also clear, that children arrive at school not ready to learn, having not achieved the levels that they should.

“They’re already behind, they stay behind, and they don’t catch up in the way that they should during their time at school, which is why I’ve expanded early years education in such a big way.”

The solutions involved not just schools, Phillipson said, but “beyond the school gate, because so much of what a child is able to achieve in their life comes down to the support their family have”.

In an earlier interview with Times Radio, she said: “Class is a huge driver of outcomes, never mind in our politics, but right across society. If by class we mean the family that you’re born into determining what you go on to achieve in life, that’s as strong a driver as anything.

“We know that children born into less well-off families are more likely to arrive at school further behind their more affluent peers. We know they don’t make progress across school in closing that gap, and we know they’re more likely at the end of school to go into being not in education, employment, or training.

“So, background, social background, family background, where you’re born, they are big determinants of what you achieve in your life.”

Among recommendations in the report were an increased focus on reading for white working-class children at primary schools, and an expansion in apprenticeships.

It also recommended free local public transport for young people aged up to 21 to reach education, training and work, and expanding the government’s offer of 30 hours of free childcare beyond just those in work, taking in all disadvantaged families.

The study also called for more early-years support, improved mental health support and restrictions on smartphone use in schools.