Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will respond to the report published on 10 January 2019 by the Higher Education Policy Institute entitled The Impact of Selective Secondary Education on Progression to Higher Education.

Selective schools are some of the highest performing schools in the country and an important part of a diverse education system. Almost all of them are rated Good or Outstanding, and they are popular with parents. That is why the Government continues to support their expansion, through the Selective School Expansion Fund, where they meet the high bar that has been set for working to increase the admission of pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The Department is committed to opening more university-sponsered maths schools, building on the success of King’s College London Mathematics School and the Exeter Mathematics School, to help prepare more of the most mathematically able students to succeed in maths disciplines at top universities and pursue mathematically intensive careers.

The Department currently has no plans to formally respond to this paper.