Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he plans to introduce Essential skills Maths and English for students with lower levels of attainment in respect of the GCSE curriculum.

The government recognises the importance of English and maths both in work and everyday life. In England, we want to ensure that pupils benefit from reformed GCSEs, which are the gold standard qualification at 16. The new GCSEs are better at equipping young people with the literacy and numeracy required for further study and employment.

Students in England who leave school without a GCSE grade 4/C or above in English and maths have to continue studying these subjects.

Post-16 students with prior attainment of a GCSE grade 2 or below have a choice of which qualification to study including GCSEs and functional skills qualifications. We are reforming functional skills qualifications to improve their rigour and relevance, as well as improving their recognition amongst employers.