Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the educational impact on infant pupils of being taught in classes of over 30 pupils.

The Department for Education has reviewed academic studies on the relationship between class size and attainment. The effect of class sizes on attainment in primary schools has long been contested and complicated by debates about how it can be accurately measured. The most robust studies have been reviewed and suggest class sizes have little effect beyond the early years when smaller classes have some positive impact.

The review ‘Class size and education in England evidence report’ was published on the Department’s website in December 2011 and is available online at:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/class-size-and-education-in-england-evidence-report

Children are only permitted to join classes of 30 or more in exceptional cases - if for instance they are in care or from military families and admitted outside the normal admission round. On 12 June, the Department published data that showed the average infant class size currently stands at 27.4, which is well within the statutory limit of 30 pupils per teacher. This is published online at:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2014