PRESS RELEASE : Young people across England ready for next phase of education [August 2024]

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 22 August 2024.

Over a million students are celebrating receiving GCSE and vocational qualification results today (Thursday 22 August), as young people across the country prepare to move on to the next stage of their education.

The proportion of entries achieving top grades (grade 7 and above), and standard passes (grade 4) are consistent with last year as, for the second year in a row, grading has returned to pre-pandemic levels.

Regional gaps in attainment remain significant. London and the North East continue to be the highest and lowest performing regions respectively, with the difference in grades 7 or above between up to 10.7ppt , compared to 9.3ppt in 2019.

Schools Minister, Catherine McKinnell said:

“I want to congratulate both students and teachers on their achievements today despite the many challenges they’ve had to overcome over the past few years to get here.

“While this is a moment to celebrate, I am deeply concerned about the inequalities in our education system with where you live and what type of school you attend still being too big an influence on your opportunities.

“Our review of the curriculum will break down barriers and ensure art, sport, music and drama are no longer the preserve of a privileged few.”

Whilst more students entered art and design this year compared to last, entries to all other arts subjects are lower than in 2019.

Arts are a vital part of students accessing a broad and balanced curriculum and along with culture and sport, are essential in supporting children and young people to develop life skills and creativity.

The government’s Curriculum and Assessment Review has been launched to drive high and rising standards for all pupils and tackle the barriers which hold them back. The review will bring together leading education experts, leaders and staff, so every child benefits from a curriculum that is broad and rich, and ensuring the arts and music are no longer the preserve of a privileged few.

Technical Awards – which 43% of students last year took alongside GCSEs – play an important role in accessing these subjects, with qualifications in a range of areas from graphic design and music to engineering and sports.

Girls continue to outperform boys, however at grade 4 and above the gap (6.6 ppt) has narrowed compared to 2023 (6.8ppt) and 2019 (8.9ppt).

This year results also show that:

• 22.6% of English 16-year-old entries achieved a grade 7 and above, similar to 2023 (22.4%) and 0.8 ppt higher than 2019 (21.8%)
• 70.4% achieved grade 4 and above, similar to 2023 (70.3%) and 0.5ppt higher than in 2019 (69.9%)
• Regional gaps in attainment remain significant. London and the North East remain the highest and lowest performing regions with the difference in grades 7 or above between the regions remaining stable at 10.7ppt for all ages, compared to 9.3ppt in 2019.
• Secondary selective schools continue to have the highest proportion of grades at 7 or above (60.3% at all ages) followed by independent schools (48.4%) and academies (21.2%).
• Apart from art and design, all arts subjects have seen a decrease in 16-year-old entries since 2019. The largest declines are in performing and expressive arts (-28.7%) and Drama (-14.4%), with both subjects having also seen decreases in entries from 2023.
• Entries in PE from 16-year-olds have also declined by 2.9% since 2019.

Students collecting results today will progress to one of many high-quality options including A levels, hundreds of apprenticeship routes, vocational technical qualifications (VTQs) or T Levels.

Starting this September, more high-quality T Levels will be rolled out, including in fields like Animal Care and Media, equipping students with valuable qualifications and practical experience to succeed in future industries.