Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what comparative assessment her Department has made of the proportion of secondary schools rated (a) good and (b) outstanding in the (i) West Midlands and (ii) London in each of the last three years.

In the West Midlands, the proportion of secondary schools judged Good in their last inspection as at 31 August 2015, 2016 and 2017 was 49%, 53% and 56% while the proportion judged Outstanding over the same period was 21%, 21% and 22%.

In London, the proportion of secondary schools judged Good in their last inspection as at 31 August 2015, 2016 and 2017 was 50%, 53% and 51% while the proportion judged Outstanding over the same period was 35%, 36% and 38%.

Nine out of ten schools are now rated Good or Outstanding across England with 1.9 million more pupils being taught in schools rated Good or Outstanding than in 2010.

As my Rt hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education said on 14 December when launching our action plan to drive social mobility through education, we want to make sure opportunities are spread evenly across the country. The action plan ‘Unlocking Talent, Fulfilling Potential’ is available in the Libraries of both Houses.

We are targeting the areas that need the most support through the £72 million ‘Opportunity Areas’ programme, and by investing £280 million over the next two years to target resources at the schools most in need to improve their performance and deliver more good school places.