Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to raise standards of literacy at schools in Essex.

Being able to read is vital for children’s future success. Thanks to the Government reforms and the hard work of teachers across the country, 154,000 more six year olds are on track to become fluent readers, and international evidence has shown that our nine year olds have achieved their highest ever scores in reading. In 2017, 82% of children in Essex passed the phonics screening check, slightly above the national average. Schools in Essex are benefitting from funding to support school improvement in reading outcomes for boys in primary and secondary schools, and to improve the teaching of phonics in primary schools.

The Department wants to build on these successes by supporting teachers to further raise standards for all children. We have announced that we will set up a new Centre of Excellence for Literacy Teaching and a national network of 35 English Hubs across the country. The exact locations of hubs will be decided in due course.