'Good news' for borough's schools

A HAMMERSMITH and Fulham council officer has welcomed 'good news across the piece' after provisional academic results for 2023-24 showed the borough's schools typically performed above the national average.

- By BEN LYNCH Local democracy reporter

A report detailing the outcomes of assessments for the academic year demonstrated impressive results across age groups, including for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).

Georgina Herry, head of school effectiveness at the borough council, said the results are testament to the work of leaders and staff in the midst of a 'challenging environment nationally.' The report, which went before the Children and Education Policy and Accountability Committee on Tuesday last week, detailed the findings broken down by age groups and compared against the national average.

The percentage of children achieving a 'good level of development' at the end of Reception, for example, is listed as 70.4% for Hammersmith and Fulham, against 67.7% recorded nationally. This is up 3.5% on the 66.9% in 2022-23.

In Key Stage 2 assessments, 74.9% of pupils in the borough achieved the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, notably higher than the national average of 61.3%.