Schools, Education and Qualifications

This topic area covers statistics and information relating to schools, education attainment and qualifications in Hull including local strategic need and service provision. Further information relating to early years including good child development is given in Early Years and Good Child Development under Pregnancy, Infants and Early Years and information relating to Children with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities is under Health Factors both under the main menu item of Children and Young Children. Further information is also available on Young People Not in Education, Employment or Training under Health and Wellbeing Influences.

This page contains information from the Office for Health Improvement & Disparities’ Fingertips. Information is taken ‘live’ from the site so uses the latest available data from Fingertips and displays it on this page. As a result, some comments on this page may relate to an earlier period of time until this page is next updated (see review dates at the end of this page).

Headlines

• The overall number of school aged children with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or with Special Educational Needs Support (SEN Support) has been steadily increased in Hull between 2016/17 and 2022/23 although the levels of increase have been smaller in more recent years. There were 8,774 pupils with special educational needs (either EHCP or SEN Support) in Hull schools for the 2023/24 school year representing 19.7% of all pupils. This percentage was statistically significantly higher than England at 18.4%. The percentages varied dramatically across Hull’s primary and secondary schools. For Hull’s 71 primary schools, the percentages ranged from 0.3% to 11.2% with EHCP and from 6.6% to 27.5% requiring SEN Support. For Hull’s 13 primary schools, the percentages ranged from 0.7% to 4.0% with EHCP and from 2.3% to 18.4% requiring SEN Support. All 807 pupils attending Hull’s six special schools had EHCP.
• Overall, just under one-third (32.9%) of Hull children are are eligible for free school meals which is considerably higher than England where fewer than a quarter (23.8%) of children are eligible for free school meals. However, there are much higher rates among pupils attending special schools compared to pupils attending mainstream primary or secondary schools. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic during the 2014/15 to 2018/19 school years, around 23% were eligible for free school meals in Hull, but this has increased sharply in the last few years.
• The percentage of pupils that speak English as an additional language and the numbers from minority ethnic backgrounds has increased quite sharply in the last decade. Overall, 20% of primary schools, 16% of secondary school pupils and 9% of pupils attending Hull’s special schools speak English as an additional language. It is estimated that these pupils speak around 122 different languages in total.
• Overall Hull had a higher percentage of schools with either an outstanding or good rating than compared with the region or England as a whole. Hull’s special school performed the best, and performance was better across primary schools compared to secondary schools.
• School absence rates in Hull are statistically significantly higher than England. Between the 2013/14 and 2020/21 school years, around 5% of all half-day school sessions were missed, but this has increased dramatically following the COVID-19 pandemic to 7.8% for Hull for the 2022/23 school year. Almost one in five primary school pupils (18.7%) and over three in ten secondary school pupils (30.4%) in Hull were persistently absent from school in that they missed 10% or more of all half-day sessions. The percentage of persistent absentees has been consistently and statistically significantly higher in Hull compared to England, but a similar pattern is observed with a similar increase for England following the pandemic.
• Outcomes in primary school (Key Stage 1 and 2) in Hull are reasonably comparable to England, although outcomes have deteriorated since the beginning of the pandemic for Hull and the region and for England.
• Outcomes at the end of secondary school (Key Stage 4) are significantly lower in Hull compared to England and the region. Educational attainment is much lower among children in care. The average Attainment 8 score for 2022/23 was 42.2 for Hull’s children compared to 46.2 for England (14.9 for Hull and 19.4 for England for children in care). The average Attainment 8 score is the sum of (up to eight) qualifying GCSE grades (1-9) with English and maths included twice so that the maximum possible score for a child is 90. A lower score denotes lower educational attainment, but scores for individual pupils can be lower if they do not have eight qualifying GCSEs (not all subjects are included).
• Outcomes in Sixth Form and at colleges (Key Stage 5) in terms of grades at ‘A level’ are better in Hull compared to the region and England for 2022/23.
• In 2022, almost one in eight adults in Hull had no qualifications (12.4%) and the percentage of Hull’s population at each level of NVQ is consistently lower than that in the region and as Great Britain as a whole. However, whilst the percentages with no qualifications has halved in 2023 (to 6.0%) based on data from the Annual Population Survey, in reality this is very unlikely to have occurred. This would mean around 10,000 Hull residents aged 16-64 who previously had no qualifications in 2022, gained qualifications in 2023. This is unrealistic and infeasible, and as a result throws doubt on the 2023 figures.
• There were large differences in the percentage of people aged 16+ years without qualifications or with qualifications at degree level or higher. Based on the 2021 Census, one-third or more residents in areas of North Carr, Orchard Park, St Andrew’s & Docklands, Newington & Gipsyville and Marfleet had no qualifications.

The Population Affected – Why Is It Important?

Good education improves career prospects, raises aspirations, and gives people more financial control over their lives. Poor education and training, and low educational attainment can affect confidence, aspirations, and increase the risk of lifelong unemployment, benefit dependency or low paid employment. These factors have a strong influence on health and wellbeing. Children (and adults) with low confidence and aspirations, and with low educational attainment are more likely to make poor choices in their lives, are less likely to achieve well-paid satisfying regular employment, have poor resilience, and increase the likelihood of poor health and wellbeing. Children living in more deprived areas are more likely to grow up thinking that poverty, poor housing, and unemployment are the norm, which could result in cyclic behaviours with these children behaving as their parents do as they reach adulthood. Early intervention in childhood can help reduce physical and mental health problems and prevent social dysfunction being passed from one generation to the next.

Following the Children and Families Act 2014, children and young people (under the age of 25 years) who have Special Educational Needs may have an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan, developed by all professionals and the family working together, to address all needs that a child or young person has within education, health and care.  Prior to the Act, children were on School Action, School Action Plus or have SEN statements (three classifications in order of severity of additional need requirements).  Within the Act, SEN Support replaces School Action and School Action Plus (in schools) and Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus (in early years).

Literacy is the combination of reading, writing, speaking and listening skills we all need to fulfil our potential. These life skills are essential to the happiness, health and wealth of individuals and society. It is quite an old research survey now, but in 2011, levels of literacy and numeracy were assessed (and also examined in relation to the Index of Multiple Deprivation 2010). In England, 15% of working-age adults struggled with literacy with their literacy below levels expected of an eleven year old, but this was 26% among people living in most deprived 25% of areas nationally (and only 5% among those living in least deprived 25% of areas). Concerns over staff literacy were widespread. Of employers who rated the competency of their low-skilled staff as poor or satisfactory, over half reported problems with literacy. Men and women with poor literacy were less likely to be in full-time employment at the age of thirty, and poor literacy skills can also be a serious barrier to progressing once in employment with 63% of men and 75% of women with very low literacy skills having never received a promotion. There are too many adults who lack basic literacy skills. Whilst 92% of the British public say literacy is vital to the economy, and essential for getting a good job, a quarter of children and young people do not recognise a link between reading and success. Fourteen percent of children and young people in lower income homes rarely or never read their books for pleasure. One in five parents easily find the opportunity to read to their children, with the rest struggling to read to their children due to fatigue and busy lifestyles. Marmot in his strategic review of health inequalities in England post-2010 stated that “Parental involvement in their child’s reading has been found to be the most important determinant of language and emergent literacy”.

In the 2011 study, a high percentage of the working-age population in England had poor numeracy. Overall, 49% had numeracy skills below the expected levels of an eleven year old, but this was 35% among those with an Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) of 0-9 (least deprived 25% of areas of England) but 62% and 72% among those with an IMD score 30-39 and 40+ (combined most deprived 25%). 

Among working-age adults who lived in areas with an IMD score of 50+ (most deprived 7% of areas of England), 64%, 53% and 62% were at Level 2 or below in relation to word processing, email and spreadsheets respectively (28%, 20% and 28% among those with an IMD score of 1-9). Level 2 refers to being able to use Information and Communications Technology to communicate, as well as enter and edit small amounts of information in ways that are fit for purpose and audience.

The transition between education and employment can be difficult for many young people, but especially so for young people who lack good working role models, have poor literacy and/or numeracy skills, do not feel confident about themselves and lack resilience to cope with changing circumstances. It is even more difficult for vulnerable groups such as those with learning disabilities or young people who have been in care and/or young people who do not have family support networks. Young people with poor educational attainment are more likely to be not in education, employment or training (NEET) and more likely to become teenage parents. The teenage years are generally the time when young people experiment with unhealthy lifestyle behaviours such as smoking, alcohol consumption and using drugs, and this behaviour is more likely to be tried or sustained among vulnerable young people and those finding the transition into adulthood difficult.

The Hull Picture

Educational Provision in the City

As at October 2024, there were 42,646 children and young people attending the city’s educational provision (excluding independent schools) split into the following types of provision:

• Nursery schools – 1
• Primary schools – 71
• Secondary schools – 13
• Special schools – 6
• Pupil referral units – 7
• Independent schools – 2

Special Educational Needs

From 2014, Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) were introduced to replace the existing system of Statement of Educational Needs (SEN – often referred to as “Statements”). It was hoped that the new system would be all encompassing and would detail in a single document the needs of the child rather than having the need for multiple plans. Although SEN and EHCPs were/are reviewed annually, the switch over to the new system took a number of years, so for some time a dual system was in place with some children having a SEN and others an EHCP.

Just over a quarter (28.1% in 2023) of pupils with an EHCP in the city attend specialist provision (special schools) and slightly more (41.0% in 2023) a mainstream school. The number of pupils attending a special school with a SEN/EHCP has been steadily increasing, more so from 2018 and in 2022 there were 740 pupils with an EHCP in Hull special schools. This decreased slightly to 730 in 2023. The number of pupils attending a Hull mainstream school with a SEN/EHCP was relatively stable up until the changeover and number began to increase from 2018 also. In 2022 there were 1,065 pupils in Hull attending a mainstream school with an EHCP.

The Office for Health Improvement & Disparities’ Fingertips presents information on the percentages of school children who have Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plans or are on SEN Support. For the 2023/24 school year, a statistically significantly higher percentage of children in Hull had special educational needs (19.4%) compared to England (18.4%).

The rates in Hull have steadily increased in Hull between 2016/17 and 2022/23 with a sharper increase in the last year. However, across the region and England, the percentages have also increased, and at a faster rate so the difference between Hull and England is smaller now than it was a decade ago. In 2015/16, the difference between Hull and England was 2.9 percentages points or 20%, but in 2023/24 the difference was 1.3 percentage points or 7%.

There were 8,774 pupils in Hull with EHC Plans or requiring SEN Support in the 2023/24 school year.

From the national school league tables, the prevalence of EHC Plans and SEN support within Hull’s schools differ widely as follows:

• All 807 pupils from Hull’s six special schools have EHC Plans.
• Across Hull’s 71 state-funded primary schools, the percentage of pupils with EHC Plans ranges from 0.3% to 11.2%, and the percentage of pupils with SEN Support ranges from 6.6% to 27.5%.
• Across Hull’s 13 state-funded secondary schools, the percentage of pupils with EHC Plans ranges from 0.7% to 4.0%, and the percentage of pupils with SEN Support ranges from 2.3% to 18.4%.

The following mainstream primary schools have more than 5% of their pupils on EHC Plans:

• Appleton Primary School (5.6%)
• Victoria Dock Primary School (5.9%)
• Spring Cottage Primary School (6.7%)
• Ings Primary School (7.4%)
• Rokeby Park Primary School (7.8%)
• Dorchester Primary School (8.5%)
• Christopher Pickering Primary School (9.0%)
• Wansbeck Primary School (11.2%)

The following mainstream primary schools have more than 20% of their pupils with SEN Support:

• Chiltern Primary School (20.1%)
• The Green Way Academy (20.4%)
• Stockwell Academy (20.5%)
• Westcott Primary School (21.1%)
• Griffin Primary School (21.3%)
• Wheeler Primary School (21.3%)
• Bude Park Primary School (21.6%)
• Adelaide Primary School (22.7%)
• Wold Academy (23.1%)
• The Parks Primary Academy (23.4%)
• Stepney Primary School (24.2%)
• Woodland Primary School (24.4%)
• Rokeby Park Primary School (27.5%)

The following mainstream secondary schools have 3% or more of their pupils on EHC Plans:

• Winifred Holtby Academy (3.0%)
• The Marvell College (3.9%)
• Kelvin Hall School (4.0%)

The following mainstream secondary schools have more than 15% of their pupils with SEN Support:

• Archbishop Sentamu Academy (15.6%)
• Malet Lambert (12.7%)
• Newland School for Girls (16.2%)
• Sirius Academy North (17.0%)
• The Boulevard Academy (17.2%)
• Sirius Academy West (18.2%)
• Winifred Holtby Academy (18.4%)

There is increasing evidence to suggest that the demand for assessment towards EHC Plans is increasing both locally and nationally. The increase is less evident for Hull. However, there is bound to be an increase from 2014 when they were first introduced. For Hull, the absolute numbers are lower for 2021 and 2022, which might be due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but numbers did not change much across the region or England during these two years. Hull has been inconsistent in producing plans within the statutory time frame of 20 weeks.

Year	Hull (N)	Hull (%)	Y&H (N)	Y&H (%)	England (N)	England (%)
2014	0	–	50	62.5	836	61.5
2015	4	17.4	1,181	61.9	13,451	54.6
2016	110	48.9	1,875	57.1	20,045	55.7
2017	172	90.1	2,413	60.1	25,302	61.3
2018	55	20.5	2,725	59.8	28,178	58.0
2019	274	89.0	3,282	71.1	31,313	58.7
2020	256	87.4	3,622	68.9	32,863	55.6
2021	74	23.2	3,502	64.9	35,470	57.9
2022	96	27.1	3,640	61.2	31,226	47.7
2023	138	30.4	4,444	55.5	39,784	49.1

More information is available on Children with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities under Health Factors under Children and Young People.

Free School Meals

Children in state-funded schools in England are entitled to received free school meals if a parent or carer were in receipt of any of the following benefits:

• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• the guarantee element of the State Pension Credit
• Child Tax Credit (provided they were not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and had an annual gross income of no more than £16,190, as assessed by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs)
• Working Tax Credit run-on – paid for four weeks after having stopped being qualified for Working Tax Credit
• Universal Credit – if applied on or after 1 April 2018 and the household income is less than £7,400 a year (after tax and not including any benefits)

Pupils in families with no recourse to public funds can also be eligible for free school meals. Since 1 April 2018, transitional protections have been in place which will continue during the roll out of Universal Credit. This has meant that pupils eligible for free school meals on or after 1 April 2018 retain their free school meal eligibility even if their circumstances change. Prior to the pandemic, this had been the main driver in the increase in the proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals as pupils continue to become eligible but fewer pupils stop being eligible. Any pupil gaining eligibility for free school meals after 1 April 2018 will be protected against losing free school meals until March 2025. After March 2025, any existing claimants that no longer meet the eligibility criteria will continue to receive free school meals until the end of their current phase of education (i.e. primary or secondary).

The charts below show the levels of free school meal eligibility in primary, secondary and special schools since 2015. The latest data is for the academic year of 2022/23. The overall trend in the percentage of free school meal eligibility is increasing and Hull is consistently above the levels seen in the Yorkshire and Humber region as a whole, as well as England. In the latest data 33.2% of children in Hull state-funded primary schools are eligible for free school meals, compared with 25.9% in the region and 24.0% in England. For secondary schools the latest Hull figure was 31.0%, in Yorkshire and the Humber it was 25.4% and for England it was 22.7%.

The picture in special schools is even more stark. In the latest data 54.3% of children in Hull state-funded special schools are eligible for free school meals, compared with 47.4% in the region and 46.0% in England.

Levels of free school meal eligibility is consistently higher in Hull than it is either in the region or England as a whole.

However, children in Key Stage 1 (reception, Year 1 and Year 2) automatically receive free school meals, so not all parents who are eligible apply for free school meals for their child(ren). However, applying for school meals is encouraged by the school as they obtain additional funding for each pupil eligible for free school meals. Therefore, the figures below may not include all children who are eligible for free school meals, and are the numbers who have applied for free school meals.

Almost one-third of school children in Hull are eligible for free school meals in 2022/23 compared to under one-quarter for England. The percentage in Hull is the highest in the region. Hull is 25th highest out of the 149 upper-tier local authorities with information on free school meal eligibility (Islington has the highest percentage at 42.3%).

Between 2015/16 and 2018/19, the numbers of pupils eligible for free school meals had increased slightly but the prevalence had only increased by 0.9%. However, the percentage increased during the 2019/20 school year by 16% and has continued to increase for both 2021/22 and 2022/23, but by smaller margins (around 5% each year). The first lockdown for the COVID-19 pandemic commenced at the end of March 2020 during the 2019/20 school year, and the impact of the pandemic and subsequent cost of living crisis has had an impact on the numbers eligible for free school meals in Hull.

Over 43,100 pupils attended Hull schools in 2022/23, and 14,182 of them are eligible for free school meals.

The increase in eligibility has also increased across England and the region at a relatively similar rate to Hull.

The national school league tables give the percentages of pupils eligible for free school meals at any time during the last six years for the 2023/24 school year. Overall, 35.9% of primary school pupils, 36.4% of secondary school pupils and 55.9% of special school pupils were or had been eligible for free school meals at any time in the last six years compared to 25.9%, 27.3% and 50.5% of pupils respectively for England.

Across Hull’s schools for 2023/24, there are large differences in the percentages eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years.

Among state funded primary schools, the percentages ranged from 5.5% to 71.0% with the following schools having more than 60% of their pupils eligible for free school meals:

• The Green Way Academy (60.8%)
• Thorpepark Academy (62.1%)
• Woodland Primary School (64.0%)
• The Parks Primary Academy (71.0%)

Among state funded secondary schools, the percentages ranged from 14.4% to 53.6% with the following schools having the majority of their pupils eligible for free school meals:

• Sirius Academy North (51.9%)
• Archbishop Sentamu Academy (53.6%)

Among state funded special schools, the percentages ranged from 42.7% to 79.0% with the following schools having the majority of their pupils eligible for free school meals:

• Tweendykes School (50.4%)
• Ganton School (57.4%)
• Oakfield (70.2%)
• Bridgeview Special School (79.0%)

Pupils from Minority Ethnic Backgrounds

The percentage of pupils from ethnic minority backgrounds attending Hull schools has doubled in the last decade from 9.1% in 2010 (14.9% in 2014 and 17.3% in 2016) to 21.5% in 2020.

In the January 2021 school census, 21.9% were from ethnic minority backgrounds.

The impact of Eastern European migration has impacted massively on the city’s school population in recent years.

Further information can be found within Race and Ethnicity under Population.

Pupils with English as an Additional Language

Over the last 10 years or so the prevalence of pupils in the city’s schools that speak English as an additional language has increased significantly.

Among state-funded mainstream schools in Hull for 2023/24, 19.7% of primary school, 16.0% of secondary school and 9.0% of special school pupils first language was not English. This equates to 4,934 primary, 2,717 secondary and 73 special school pupils whose first language is not English. It is estimated that these pupils speak a range of 122 languages other than English.

Figures vary widely across Hull’s schools ranging from 2.5% to 70.0% across Hull’s primary and secondary schools. Further information is presented under Race and Ethnicity within Population.

School type	Hull (N)	Hull (%)	England (%)
Primary schools	4,934	19.7	22.8
Secondary schools	2,717	16.0	18.6
Special schools	73	9.0	14.4
All maintained schools	7,724

Further information can be found within Race and Ethnicity under Population.

School Absence and Exclusions

The Office for Health Improvement & Disparities’ Fingertips provides information on overall absence from school.

Pupil absence is measured as the percentage of half-day sessions missed by pupils which includes both authorised (due to illness and health issues) and unauthorised absence.

Children who have missed 10% or more of all half-day sessions are deemed to be persistently absent from school.

During 2022/23, pupil absence was statistically significantly higher in Hull compared to England (7.8% versus 7.4% of half-day sessions missed). The percentage of persistent absentees for primary and secondary school pupils were both statistically significantly higher in Hull compared to England.

Following the lockdowns for the COVID-19 pandemic and the temporary closure of schools, there has been an increasing trend in school absence which has been observed in Hull, but this follows the same pattern observed for England and for the region.

A total of 997,174 half-day sessions were missed by all pupils in Hull during the 2022/23 school year.

Among primary schools, the trends in the percentage of pupils who are persistently absent has been around 10% for primary school pupils in Hull between 2014/15 and 2020/21, but have increased significantly doubling to 20.7% for 2021/22 with a decrease to 18.7% for 2022/23.

There were around 21,187 primary school pupils in Hull of which 3,962 (18.7%) missed 10% or more of all half-day sessions during the 2022/23 school year.

The percentage of persistent absentees at secondary school is much higher than for primary school pupils.

Between 2014/15 and 2018/19 between 15.1% and 17.4% of secondary school pupils in Hull missed 10% or more of all half-day sessions during the school year, but this increased to 19.3% for 2020/21 and increased sharply to 31.7% for 2021/22, although there has been a slight decrease to 30.4% for 2022/23.

Whilst the percentage in Hull has been statistically significantly higher than England throughout the entire period 2014/15 to 2022/23, the difference has remained relatively constant with the rate in Hull being around three percentage points higher than England.

There were around 15,793 secondary school pupils in Hull of which 4,801 (30.4%) missed 10% or more of all half-day sessions during the 2022/23 school year.

Quality of Educational Provision

As at 31 December 2023 Ofsted published the percentage of all the city’s establishments judged good or better at the last Ofsted inspection ranged from 84.6% to 100% with an average of 93.8% across the City.

	Hull	Yorkshire & Humber	England
All Schools	93.8%	87.9%	89.7%
Nursery Schools	100%	100%	97.9%
Primary Schools	94.4%	89.0%	91.0%
Secondary Schools	84.6%	81.1%	82.9%
Special Schools	100%	84.1%	89.8%
Alternative Provision Schools	100%	91.2%	86.2%

Overall Hull had a higher percentage of schools with either an outstanding or good rating (93.8%) than compared with the region (87.9%) or England as a whole (89.7%). However this performance is not across the whole spectrum of education. For instance, whilst 94.4% of primary schools in Hull received either an outstanding or good rating (compared with 89.0% in the region and 91.0% in England), only 84.6% of secondary schools in Hull received the same rating (compared with 81.1% in the region and 82.9% in England).

For the 2023/24 at the last Ofsted inspection from national school league table information, 18 schools in Hull were rated as outstanding, 66 as good and six rated as requires improvement.

Ofsted rating	Primary	Secondary	Special	Total
Outstanding	12	2	4	18
Good	55	9	2	66
Requires improvement	4	2	0	6
Total	71	13	6	90

This meant that one-fifth of Hull schools were rated as outstanding, 73% as good and 6.7% rated as requires improvement. Ratings were highest among Hull’s special schools, and higher among Hull’s primary schools compared to secondary schools.

Ofsted rating	Primary (Hull)	Secondary (Hull)	Special (Hull)	Total (Hull)
Outstanding	16.9	15.4	66.7	20.0
Good	77.5	69.2	33.3	73.3
Requires improvement	5.6	15.4	0.0	6.7
Total	100	100	100	100

A higher percentage of Hull’s schools were rated as ‘outstanding’ and a lower percentage were rated as ‘requires improvement’ in 2023/24 compared to all of state maintained England.

Ofsted rating	Primary (England)	Secondary (England)	Special (England)	Total (England)
Outstanding	10.4	15.3	25.7	12.3
Good	82.1	71.4	65.7	79.3
Requires improvement	7.5	13.3	8.6	8.4
Total	100	100	100	100

Outcomes and Educational Achievements

Primary school outcomes data is not available for 2019/20 and 2020/21 as assessments were not undertaken in schools due to national lockdowns for the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools were closed to the majority of pupils between the end of March 2020 to the end of the school year in July 2020, and during the majority of the Spring term between Christmas and Easter in 2021 (opening a couple of weeks prior to the Easter school holiday).

There were no examinations in 2019/20 and 2020/21 due to the pandemic. Qualifications and educational attainment were determined on the basis of coursework and other factors. The results were generally higher for these two years, and this means that the results in 2019/20 and 2020/21 are not comparable with earlier or subsequent years.

Not only did the pandemic affect school-aged children in terms of their education, but the lockdowns and limited to social mixing impacted on social development outside school for primary and secondary school pupils, but this also affected younger pre-school children considerably who reply on social interactions to a greater extent for their development.

Among school children, there were significant disparities in home schooling. Children living in more deprived households were less likely to have resources (books, tablets and laptops, wifi, etc) to be able to be home schooled. Home learning was also likely to be dependent on supervision and the working situation of their parents or carers. It would also have been more difficult to undertake school learning with multiple children in different school years all doing different school work especially if work was online and there were not enough devices for all children in the household. Schools were open to some children who were eligible for free school meals and children of ‘key worker’ parents during some of the lockdowns, but not all of these children would have attended.

Outcomes in Primary School

Outcomes in Early Years Foundation Stage (Reception Year)

For the 2022/23 school year, the percentage of children who had achieved a good level of development at the end of their reception year was statistically significantly lower in Hull compared to England for all pupils (65.5% versus 67.2%), but statistically significantly higher for the subset of children eligible for free school meals (56.3% versus 51.6%). However, the percentage of all reception children that achieved at least the expected level of development in communication, language and literacy skills was also statistically significantly lower in Hull than England (66.3% versus 68.8%).

Prior to the pandemic in the 2018/19 school year, 67.7% of reception children had received a good level of development in Hull compared to 71.8% for England. Among the subset of children eligible for free school meals, the percentages were 58.8% for Hull and 56.5% for England. Overall, 68.0% had achieved at least the expected level of development in communication, language and literacy skills in Hull. So the percentages of children achieving a good level of development has decreased in the last 2-3 years and it is likely that the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdowns and less social mixing had an impact on child development.

Further information is given above in relation to ‘school readiness’ and under Early Years and Good Child Development within Pregnancy, Infants and Early Years within Children and Young People.

Outcomes in Year 1

The percentage of Year 1 children achieving the expected level in their phonics screening was slightly higher in Hull compared to England for 2022/23 (79.7% versus 78.9%) and statistically significantly higher among children eligible for free school meals (74.1% versus 66.5%).

The percentages decreased in Hull from 79.2% in 2018/19 to 77.0% in 2021/22, but with the increase to 79.7% for 2022/23, the percentage is around the same level as pre-pandemic levels. Among the subset of children eligible for free school meals, the percentage achieving the expected level in their phonics screening decreased in England by 7.9 percentage points. There was no such decrease for Hull where the percentages increased slightly from 69.9% in 2018/19 to 71.0% in 2021/22. There were increases for both Hull and England last year with increases greater for England, but despite that, it was not sufficient to offset the large decrease for England between 2018/19 and 2021/22. Further information is given above in relation to Year 1 outcomes are given under Early Years and Good Child Development within Pregnancy, Infants and Early Years within Children and Young People.

Further information is given above in relation to outcomes in Year 1 can be found under Early Years and Good Child Development within Pregnancy, Infants and Early Years within Children and Young People.

Outcomes in Key Stage 2

Key Stage 2 continues to be a strength for the city with rates generally higher or comparable to England and the region. However, the percentages meeting the expected standards in reading, writing and mathematics decreased considerably following the COVID-19 pandemic, falling by 11 percentage points from 68% in 2019/20 to 57% in 2021/22, although the sharp fall was not unique to Hull with both England and the region showing decreases. However, the decrease in Hull was slightly greater falling by 16% compared to 13% for the region and 11% for England. Levels have increased slightly in 2022/23.

The percentage of Hull pupils meeting the expected standard in each of the three areas decreased during the pandemic, although the largest decrease occurred for mathematics.

Hull: Key stage 2 attainment	2015/16	2016/17	2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	2022/23
Percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined)	53%	63%	67%	68%	x	x	58%	61%
Percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in reading	64%	71%	76%	77%	x	x	73%	72%
Percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in writing	79%	77%	78%	79%	x	x	72%	74%
Percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in maths	69%	76%	78%	80%	x	x	68%	73%

Outcomes in Secondary School (Key Stage 4)

Attainment 8 is a summary measure of how well pupils have achieved in their GCSE results. It measures achievements of a pupil across eight qualifications including mathematics and English with the latter two subjects double-weighted. Essentially this means that the highest score a pupil can achieve is 90 as the highest score in a single qualification is 9 thus there are 72 points for 8 qualifications but a further 18 points to add for mathematics and English as they are included twice. Only qualifying subjects count so if a pupil achieves eight GCSEs but only six of them are in qualifying subjects then they will score lower as two subjects will not be scored or counted. So comparisons depend on the range of subjects taken by pupils, and some independent schools may have other qualifications which don’t count towards the Attainment 8 score.

The old grades of A* and A are equivalent to numerical grades 9-7, grades B and C are equivalent to numerical grades 6-4 with 5 representing a ‘strong pass’ and 4 representing a ‘standard pass’, grades D to G are equivalent to numerical grades 3-1. Whilst there is no direct equivalence, the bottom of grade 7 is aligned with the bottom of grade A, the bottom of grade 4 is aligned with the bottom of grade C and the bottom of grade 1 is aligned with the bottom of grade G. Whilst grades 4-5 technically count as a pass, many sixth forms insist on a minimum of of 5s or 6s as a condition of entry for further study. The government school league tables are based on the percentage of pupils who achieve a 5 or above in English and maths GCSEs, and if you get a grade 3 or below in English or maths, you will have to resit next year.

The average Attainment 8 score for Hull is given below in relation to local authorities across the Yorkshire and Humber region.

During 2022/23, the average Attainment 8 score was lower in Hull at 42.2 compared to England (46.2). Children in care had much lower average Attainment 8 scores, and this was the case for both Hull (14.9) and England (19.4). It is likely that children in care obtain lower outcomes in their GCSEs, but it is also possible that they undertake fewer qualifying GCSEs.

During the 2020/21 school year, the average Attainment 8 score was 38.6 among children eligible for free school meals compared to 39.1 for England, so the average score in England was only marginally better.

Whilst the Attainment 8 score had improved in Hull between 2016/17 and 2020/21, the major part of the increase is likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic due to educational attainment determined on the basis of coursework and other factors (for 2019/20 and 2020/21). The results were generally higher for these two years, and this means that the results in 2019/20 and 2020/21 are not comparable with earlier years. When examinations recommenced in 2021/22, the average Attainment 8 score was comparable to 2018/19, although has decreased in 2022/23. However, this pattern of change is not unique to Hull with similar trends over time observed for both England and across the region.

The average Attainment 8 score among children in care also increased in Hull for 2019/20 and 2020/21, but the score was also higher in 2021/22 in contrast to England and the pattern of change observed for all pupils in Hull. However, there has been a substantial reduction in the average Attainment 8 score among children in care in 2022/23 falling to a new low of 14.9 in Hull.

As at June 2024, trend data for the average Attainment 8 score among pupils eligible for free school meals is not available with only data for 2020/21.

Outcomes in Sixth Form (Key Stage 5)

Due to the impact of the pandemic it is difficult to assess the trend in A Level results in the city. In 2018 and 2019 Hull pupils in both state funded schools and colleges achieved fewer 3+ A grades and A*/A/B grades than both the Yorkshire and Humber total and the England total overall. However, the average point score (APS) for those pupils who were successful was either on a par or exceeding both the regional and the national values.

The 2019/20 and 2020/21 A Level exam seasons were cancelled with grades being awarded either by a moderated algorithm or later be centres (Schools and colleges were asked to allocate grades based on their best judgement regarding what grade they believed candidates would have achieved if exams had gone ahead. These institutions were referred to as centres). Significant grade inflation took place in those two years. Examinations resumed for the 2021/22 academic year and it was decided that the system for marking and awarding grades would be based on a mid point of the assessed marks and grades of the two preceding pandemic years. Consequently a marked drop has been noted, although grades still remain higher than those recorded before the pandemic.

Percentage achieving 3 A* to A grades	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	2022/23
Hull	7.4%	15.3%	21.8%	17.4%	15.0%
Yorkshire and the Humber	10.0%	18.2%	23.5%	19.0%	12.4%
England	13.7%	20.3%	25.3%	19.9%	10.8%

Percentage achieving AAB grades or better	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	2022/23
Hull	13.4%	26.2%	31.3%	31.7%	25.6%
Yorkshire and the Humber	17.38%	28.2%	35.1%	29.8%	20.9%
England	18.4%	30.4%	37.6%	31.4%	22.5%

A levels: average points score	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	2022/23
Hull	34.1%	39.5%	40.8%	37.9%	35.6%
Yorkshire and the Humber	32.6%	38.0%	40.0%	37.3%	33.6%
England	32.9%	38.5%	40.5%	37.9%	34.2%

Highest Educational Qualifications Among Adults

Local authority labour market profiles are available from Official Labour Market Statistics (nomis) and present information on the number of working-age adults by their highest educational attainment from the Office for National Statistics Annual Population Survey.

In 2023 the percentage of adults aged 16-64 years with no qualifications was lower in Hull at 6.0% compared to the region (7.6%) and across Great Britain (6.5%). The percentage was estimated to be 12.4% in 2022. For the percentage to have halved in Hull is totally unrealistic and not feasible within a short time period, especially across all people aged 16-64 years. If the change was real, then this would mean around 10,000 Hull residents aged 16-64 who previously had no qualifications in 2022, gained qualifications in 2023.

Hull’s levels of deprivation are much higher than England and the region, and the percentage of Hull’s residents with no qualifications is likely to be much higher in Hull. The change in Hull is much more likely to be associated with a biased sample of individuals taking part the Office for National Statistics Annual Population Survey from where the estimates are derived.

Overall, 33.3% of working-age people in Hull had qualifications at National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) 4 or above (degree, full technical certificates and Higher National Certificates) compared to 41.2% across the Yorkshire and Humber, and 47.3% for Great Britain. However, the percentage increased in Hull from 29.6% to 33.3% in one year between 2022 and 2023. This also seems unrealistic so this throws doubt into the results from the Annual Population Survey for 2023 for Hull.

Qualification	Hull 2023 (N)	Hull 2023 (%)	Y&H 2023 (%)	GB 2023 (%)
NVQ4 and above	53,100	33.0	41.2	47.3
NVQ3 and above	93,600	58.2	64.8	67.8
NVQ2 and above	133,700	83.1	85.1	86.5
NVQ1 and above	142,300	88.5	87.9	89.0
Other qualifications	8,800	5.5	4.5	4.6
No qualifications	9,700	6.0	7.6	6.5

More information about the different NVQ levels can be found in the Glossary.

The percentages have improved considerably in Hull in a single year which is surprising given the percentage of the population aged 16-64 years who might be studying for a qualification at any one time. It is more likely that the differences are random variation from differences in the survey responders from Hull in the Annual Population Surveys between 2022 and 2023, although it is possible that there has been a slight shift in improvement in highest educational attainment.

Qualification	Hull 2022 (N)	Hull 2022 (%)	Y&H 2022 (%)	GB 2022 (%)
NVQ4 and above	48,800	29.6	38.9	45.7
NVQ3 and above	85,600	51.9	62.8	66.9
NVQ2 and above	128,300	77.9	84.5	85.8
NVQ1 and above	136,600	82.9	87.6	88.5
Other qualifications	7,700	4.7	4.5	4.7
No qualifications	20,500	12.4	8.0	6.8

The 2021 Census also collected information on the qualifications of adults aged 16 years or older who completed the questionnaire, and it is possible to present this at lower layer super output area geographical area for Hull. There are 168 of these geographical areas in Hull following the 2021 Census (see Glossary for more information).

Based on the 2021 Census, one-third or more residents in areas of North Carr, Orchard Park, St Andrew’s & Docklands, Newington & Gipsyville and Marfleet had no qualifications.

A similar but reversed pattern was evident when examining the percentage of residents aged 16+ years who had a highest educational attainment of level 4 or higher. Level 4 relates to degree levels, but further information relating to the different levels for qualifications can be found in the Glossary.

In most of Kingswood, Bricknell, Avenue, and Beverley & Newland wards, three in ten or more residents aged 16+ years had degrees or higher qualifications. People living in North Carr, Orchard Park, Marfleet, Longhill & Bilton Grange and West Carr were the least likely to have a degree.

Interestingly, whilst part of St Andrew’s & Docklands and Central wards were among the wards most likely to have a high percentage of the resident population without qualifications, they also had areas that had among the highest percentage of the resident population with degrees. It might be associated with younger population and newer housing developments in part of St Andrew’s & Docklands.

Strategic Need and Service Provision

Children potentially requiring additional support should be assessed as quickly as possible as early help gives rise to better outcomes. Children with an Education, Health and Care plan or in receipt of Special Educational Needs support need to have clear, comprehensive, integrated plans drawn up as soon as possible, with all professionals and the family working together to give the child the best possible care and support.

Hull’s Early Help and Prevention offer is focused on a whole family approach which aims to identify individuals and families with problems and brings together different services and agencies to collectively look at what support is needed and then work together to deliver the required support in an coordinated way. This is essential so that children and families, particularly those most in need, are supported so that children can achieve the best they can in their education to ensure good employment prospects.

There should also be promotion of physical and mental wellbeing across all educational settings. Hull was one of the places awarded funds from the Big Lottery Fund for HeadStart project. HeadStart Hull has been running a number of years in Hull with delivery across the city since a pilot in 2017. This programme aims to enable children and young people to have positive mental health and wellbeing, thrive in their ‘communities’, and be able to ‘bounce back’ from life’s challenges. The programme is running in a number of schools in Hull. There are a range of services offered through HeadStart Hull, and it is an integral part of the Early Help Delivery Model in Hull.

Employment prospects become more limited for people with fewer qualifications, and promotion is less likely. This impacts on their financial resilience, and can impact on mental wellbeing. Among adults with no formal qualifications who might struggle with basic literacy and numeracy as well as affecting their employment prospects, it can impact on many other aspects of everyday life, such as dealing with organisations if writing letters are required, dealing with household finances and bills, as well as ability to help children with homework etc. Everybody should have the opportunity to improve their employment and life choices through increased education, training and knowledge.

Resources

The Office for Health Improvement & Disparities’ Fingertips: https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/

Official Labour Market Statistics (nomis). Labour Market Profile for Hull. https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/reports/lmp/la/1946157109/report.aspx#tabempunemp

UK Government. Education, health and care plans. https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans

Marmot, M., Fair society, healthy lives: the Marmot review: strategic review of health inequalities in England post-2010. University College London Institute of Health: London, 2010.

A Bus, A.G., M.H. van IJzendoorn, and A.D. Pellegrini, Joint book reading makes for success in learning to read: a meta-analysis on intergenerational transmission of literacy. Review of Educational Research, 1995. 65(1): p. 1-21.

Jama, D. and G. Dugdale, Literacy: State of the Nation.  A picture of literacy in the UK today. 2010, National Literacy Trust: London.

Department for Business Innovation and Skills, The 2011 skills for life survey: a survey of literacy, numeracy and ICT levels in England. 2012, Department for Business Innovation and Skills: London.

Simon, N., Emerging stronger: the value of education and skills in turbulent times.  Education and skills survey 2009. 2009, Confederation of British Industry.: London.

Dugdale, G. and C. Clark, Literacy changes live: An advocacy resource. 2008, National Literacy Trust: London.

National Literacy Trust, Manifesto for literacy. 2009, National Literacy Trust: London.

Clark, C., S. Osborne, and G. Dugdale, Reaching out with role models: summary of the study. 2009, National Literacy Trust: London.

Book Trust, Book time and booked up: parents and carer’s research. 2009, Book Trust: London.

Updates

This page was last updated / checked on 16 December 2024.

This page is due to be updated / checked in June 2025.