Pupils in Hackney are performing “significantly” better than the national levels, according to a council report.
The report analyses student performance in the the Early Years Foundation Stage, Key Stage 2 and in secondary school pupils in Key Stage 4 in the borough.
The council said in a statement: “While results continue to vary between different groups of pupils, all children, independent of background, gender, level of need or ethnicity, outperformed the equivalent national cohort in 2023. Performance for disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs is also strong across all key stages compared to national averages.”
In 2023, Hackney ranked sixth of 153 local authorities on the percentage of pupils in Key Stage 2 achieving the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. This is an increase from the 2019 pre-pandemic levels, when Hackney ranked 60th.
Seventy per cent of Hackney pupils in years three to six met all expected standards, which is ten percentage points above the national average and three percentage points above the London average. It is also an increase of one percentage point from the 2022 level in Hackney.
As for Key Stage 4, 53.4 per cent of Hackney pupils achieved the level 5 in English and maths, which is almost eight per cent higher than the national level of 45.5 per cent, but slightly below London levels. For the progress measure, Hackney was ranked 16th, rising back to the pre-pandemic levels of 16th in 2018 and 15th in 2019 after having dropped to 50th in 2022.
Pupils in alternative provision at Key Stage 4 in Hackney performed worse than the national and inner London comparable levels, however. In Hackney, 3.5 per cent of pupils achieved 4+ in English and maths, compared to 4.6 per cent in England and 9.2 per cent in inner London. While 57.3 per cent in inner London, and 52.2 per cent in England achieved any passes at GCSE or equivalent, the percentage in Hackney was 42.1.
In the report, plans were set out for raising the achievements of pupils across the borough. This includes projects focusing on early identification and support for children in Key Stage 3 showing vulnerability toward underachievement or exclusion.
The report said: “The purpose of the intervention is to disrupt this and improve attainment. The projects have been designed by the schools themselves and will include parental involvement and some element of staff training relating to building awareness of issues faced by vulnerable children.”
Councillor Anntoinette Bramble, Deputy Mayor and cabinet member for education, young people and children’s social care, said in a statement: “We’re incredibly proud of our young people, who have shown us once again their ambition and hard work, reflected in their excellent school results, both at primary and secondary level.
“Their commitment is supported by the hard work and dedication in our schools, and the support from parents, carers and the community. But that doesn’t mean that there isn’t room for more improvement.
“We want Hackney to be a place where every child has the chance to thrive and make the most out of the opportunities available to them, and we will continue to focus our time and resources investing in supporting the groups that need it the most.
“Pupils’ performance is only one of the areas where we want our schools to shine. We will continue to work hard to promote inclusivity and equity, to safeguard our children and young people, to help them follow their passions and be happy. This is part of our mission as a local authority, and one that we share with all of our talented educators.”
