Gap widening between West Midlands' secondary and primary schools

Eight out of 10 children in the region attend a primary school that is good or outstanding - in line with the national average.

But 70 per cent of secondary schools are good or outstanding, compared with the national figure of 71 per cent.

Education chiefs say the performance in secondaries is inconsistent across the region, meaning the chance of a child attending a good school often depends on where they live.

• 45 per cent of secondary school pupils in Dudley attend failing schools. However, Dudley's primary schools are among the best in the West Midlands, with 84pc of Dudley's youngsters attending good or outstanding schools.

• Primary schools in Wolverhampton remain among the worst in the country. Only 68pc of primary school pupils in Wolverhampton attend a good or outstanding school, while 67pc go to a good or outstanding secondary school.

• Just 57pc of secondary school pupils in Walsall attend good or outstanding schools - a drop of 20pc since last year. 68pc of primary school pupils attend good or outstanding primary schools, but this is one of the lowest rates in the West Midlands.

• 47pc of secondray school pupils in Sandwell attend failing schools, a drop of more than 20pc since last year. However, 82pc of primary school pupils attend top rated schools.

It is the same picture nationally, according to chief inspector Sir Michael Wilshaw who launched his third annual Ofsted report.

Sandwell is the worst performing local authority in the Black Country and Staffordshire for secondary schools. It was ranked 132 out of 150 local authorities. Dudley was ranked 127, Walsall 123 and Wolverhampton 109. Staffordshire was the best performing local authority in the area.

The report states that the performance of primaries in the West Midlands improved compared to last year. However, almost 100,000 primary aged children still attend schools that are less than good.

Russell Jordan, senior inspector for Ofsted in the West Midlands, said: "On the whole, the West Midlands is doing okay. There has been an improvement. But there is a gap between the performance of primaries and secondaries that needs to be closed.

"Dudley, Walsall and Wolverhampton have all improved in primary schools. Wolverhampton and Walsall did improve from a low base however.

"Dudley has seen a big improvement - the biggest improvement in the West Midlands. In secondary schools, Dudley is not improving at all.

"Sandwell is doing quite well in primary schools but the performance in secondary schools has dipped by a lot. Staffordshire has improved in both primaries and secondaries."

The report reveals that every single college and further education sixth form establishment in the region is now rated good or outstanding.

Mr Jordan said improvement plans were in place to get secondaries back in line with primaries such as looking at governing bodies and leadership within schools.

Sir Michael said that nationally primary school standards are continuing on an impressive upward trajectory. But he said the overall rate of improvement in secondary schools has stalled.

More than 50 more secondaries are now in special measures than was the case a year ago.

Issues identified included poor and inconsistent leadership, ineffective middle management and a failure to narrow the gap for disadvantaged pupils.

The annual report is underpinned by the findings of more than 7,000 inspections carried out during 2013/14 of schools, colleges and further education and skills providers.

The report finds that 82 per cent of primary schools are now good or outstanding - up from 78 per cent a year ago. While the overall proportion of good or outstanding secondary schools remains unchanged from last year at 71 per cent.

Sir Michael said: "This time last year, I was able to point to unmistakable signs that England's school system was improving. This year, I am reporting that primary schools are continuing on an upward trajectory.

"Many secondary schools are also doing a superb job, where leadership is excellent, teaching is inspirational and the ethos fosters a learning culture. However, weaker secondary schools are not improving at the same rate as their primary school counterparts and too many are declining.

"The essential ingredients for success are no secret and have been well documented from time immemorial ? strong leadership, a positive and orderly culture, good teaching and robust assessment systems."

In the West Midlands, more than three quarters of children live in a local authority area where safeguarding arrangements are less than good and more than a third of children live in an area where safeguarding arrangements are inadequate.

One in four children's homes in the West Midlands are not yet good, the report adds.