* The results of key stage 3 tests, announced this week, revealed that the percentage of children reaching level 5 or above in English was 66 (up 1 per cent on last year), maths 67 (up 1 per cent), science 66 (no change) and ICT 66 (up 1 per cent).
The percentage reaching level 6 in English is 32 (no change), maths 45, (2 per cent up), science 33 (1 per cent down) and ICT 27 (no change).
A government spokesman said: “These are steady improvements but our ambition is for a step change in standards. Our relentless focus on 11 to 14-year-olds, which is beginning to bed down in schools, is the key to transforming secondary education.”
