A study by think-tank the Sutton Trust found that across all children, 15 per cent of pupils who scored in the top 10 per cent nationally at age 11 in their Sats tests failed to get in the top 25 per cent at GCSE level.
However, bright boys who had been eligible for free school meals at some point in their school lives were more likely to become what the Sutton Trust terms "missing talent", with more than one in three (36 per cent) of this group underachieving at age 16.
Just under a quarter (24 per cent) of disadvantaged girls were found to underperform in their GCSEs.
The Sutton Trust has called on the government to create a national programme with ringfenced funding for highly able state school pupils.
It also wants:
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