Revealed: The 20 areas with the biggest class sizes

Class sizes have risen in the vast majority of constituencies since 2010, according to research by the NEU union
14th November 2019, 12:05am

Average class sizes have risen in 474 out of 533 constituencies in England since 2010, according to analysis by the NEU teaching union published today.

The analysis highlights 20 areas where the average primary class contains at least 28.8 pupils:

Constituency Average number of pupils per class
Christchurch 29.7
Eastbourne 29.6
Bournemouth East 29.5
Stoke-on-Trent Central 29.4
Mid Dorset and North Poole 29.3
Sutton and Cheam 29.3
Sheffield, Hallam 29.3
Dartford 29.2
Warley 29.1
Basildon and Billericay 29.1
Ilford South 29.1
Epsom and Ewell 29.0
Castle Point 29.0
Woking 28.9
Fareham 28.9
Bolton North East 28.9
Chelmsford 28.9
Maidstone and The Weald 28.8
Southend West 28.8
Gravesham 28.8


The areas listed above all have an average class size of 28.8 or more. Across Europe, the average primary school has 20 pupils per class, the analysis notes.


Read: Class sizes bigger in '9 out of 10 areas' since 2010

Revealed: The 20 areas with the smallest class sizes

Research: Class size: is smaller really better?

'Supersized classes': Half a million primary pupils are taught in 'supersized' classes


Class sizes in the spotlight

The NEU has also named the 20 constituencies with the highest average secondary class sizes:

Constituency Average number of pupils per class
Worthing West 25.5
Barnsley Central 25.2
Winchester 24.8
Thurrock 24.7
Brighton, Pavilion 24.5
Fylde 24.4
Tunbridge Wells 24.2
Great Yarmouth 24.2
Sheffield South East 24.2
Bridgwater and West Somerset 24.1
Wakefield 24.1
Stockport 24.1
Barnsley East 24.1
Shrewsbury and Atcham 24.1
Colne Valley 24.1
Harlow 24.0
New Forest East 23.9
Gosport 23.9
North Devon 23.9
Nuneaton 23.9


All those listed above have at least 23.9 pupils per class on average, against a European average for "lower secondary" of 21 pupils.