Three years ago, just over a quarter of Caribbean-heritage young mengained five A* to C GCSEs. This year, it was a third. The hard work ofschools, students and families is obvious to all. However, despite thisrise, last year around 80 per cent of all Caribbean young men leftschool without having gained five GCSEs that include English andmaths.
The disparity is not only apparent across ethnic background. Girlsconsistently gain more GCSEs than boys, while children with specialeducational needs are less likely to achieve good results. However, itis poverty that remains the decisive factor.
This is illustrated in the figures for young people taking up freeschool meals, which are means tested. Only 18 per cent of these pupilsgained five A* to C GCSEs, compared to 43 per cent of all pupils. Thismeans 65,000 young people are leaving school with fewer qualificationsthan their more affluent peers.
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