A-level results: Disadvantage gap around university access widens
Joe Lepper
Thursday, August 18, 2022
The gap between the proportion of disadvantaged pupils accessing university compared with more advantaged peers has widened since the Covid pandemic, analysis of A-level results has shown.
According to the Department for Education, this year saw 180,000 18-year-old students guaranteed their first choice of university, the most on record and a 20 per cent increase on 2019, when exams were last sat.
This includes a record 23,220 disadvantaged 18-year-olds set to go to university this year, added the DfE.
But analysis by the Sutton Trust has revealed that the gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers accessing university has widened over the last three years, from 23 percentage points in 2019, before the Covid health crisis, to 25.6 percentage points this year.
“The government must work to ensure that students from all backgrounds, in all areas of the country, have the opportunity to succeed,” Trust chairman Peter Lampl has warned.
Poor access to further and higher education for disadvantaged pupils has been described as a “shocking waste of potential” by Steve Haines, director of youth charity Impetus.
He is concerned that pupils who failed to get the GCSE grades needed to study A-levels and progress to university are disproportionately from disadvantaged backgrounds.
“Year after year around 200,000 [disdvantaged young people] don’t get the chance to progress because they didn’t get the GCSEs they needed to move onto this phase of their education,” said Haines.
“They are disproportionately young people from disadvantaged backgrounds. They’re not front-page news, but they need to be at the top of the next Prime Minister’s in tray."
He added: “If we’re serious about tackling the access gap we need to focus on helping young people long before they sit their GCSEs by ensuring they get the GCSEs that unlock opportunities in higher education and work.”
According to today’s (18 August) A-level results, 83 per cent of pupils achieve grade C or above, down on last year’s figure of 89 per cent.
In addition, the proportion of A and A* top grades has fallen by 8.4 percentage points compared to last year in England, to 36 per cent of those taking A-levels this year, compared to 44.3 per cent last year.
Examination watchdog Ofqual is looking to bring grades back to pre-pandemic levels, according to the government.
While the proportion of grades of C or above has fallen since last year the government has pointed out that they are up on pre-Covid health crisis figures
In 2019, three quarters of pupils achieved a grade of C or above and only a quarter were handed an A or A* grade.
"Our plan this year was to ensure that students could sit their exams for the first time since 2019, be graded fairly and move on to the next stage of their lives as we return to normality after the pandemic,” said Education Secretary James Cleverley.
The DfE added that the government has invested around £5bn on supporting pupils to recover from the impact of the pandemic, including £1.5bn for the National Tutoring Programme.
But this falls “far below that seen in other comparable countries”, according to Patrick Roach, general secretary of teachers’ union NASUWT.
Roach said that this week’s A-level results “were secured largely in spite of, rather than because of” support offered by the government to help schools and colleges recover from the Covid health crisis.
Congratulations to pupils and their teachers who have worked so hard in uniquely challenging circumstances to secure today’s results. #AlevelResults#AlevelResultsDay2022https://t.co/My0Nvcpfcn
— NASUWT (@NASUWT) August 18, 2022
This week’s results also show that 92.2 per cent of T-level students achieved a pass or above, with 31.9 per cent receiving a Distinction.
Lisa Morrison, research director at the National Foundation for Educational Research praised pupils who undertook this newly created technical-based qualification and “overcoming the challenging impacts of Covid-19”.
“The results are testament to the hard work and dedication of both students and providers during a very difficult and unique set of circumstances. We wish these students every success in their next steps, whether higher education, an apprenticeship or employment,” she said.
