Academic year 2024/25

Key stage 2 attainment: National headlines

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Introduction

This publication provides the latest headline statistics on attainment in key stage 2 national curriculum assessments in England. 

These statistics cover attainment in the following assessments taken by pupils at the end of year 6, when most are age 11:

  • Reading test
  • Maths test
  • Grammar, punctuation and spelling test
  • Writing teacher assessment
  • Science teacher assessment

Attainment in 2025 is compared to 2024 and previous years where possible. There were no assessments in 2020 and 2021.

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Headline facts and figures - 2024/25

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Attainment in reading, writing and maths (combined)

In 2025, 62% of pupils met the expected standard in all of reading, writing and maths, up from 61% in 2024. This is a 1.5 percentage point increase, the largest seen between years since the pandemic. However, this is below 2019 attainment, where 65% of pupils met the standard. Attainment in all of reading, writing and maths is not directly comparable to some earlier years (2016 and 2017) because of changes to writing teacher assessment frameworks in 2018.

Data is not available for 2020 and 2021 as assessments were cancelled in these years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Combinations of reading, writing and maths attainment

Figures throughout the commentary within this section are based on calculations using unrounded data. These may differ from any calculations derived from the rounded figures in diagrams. Please find further breakdowns and the underlying data in the data catalogue for this publication. 

The terms “following assessment”  or “assessed” used throughout this section relates to the reading and maths tests and the writing teacher assessment used to assess pupils that are deemed to be at the level of the standard tests and teacher assessment. Pupils deemed to be below the standard of the national curriculum assessments in one or more subjects are assessed using pre-key stage standards and/or the engagement model. These are not being referenced here but for more detail see below. 

Pupils that were assessed

3 in 10 pupils (29.4%) at the end of key stage 2 were assessed as not meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined) and 8.5% of pupils were not assessed in all 3 of the individual subjects  (either because they were below the level of the assessment or for another reason). This year 189,339 pupils were assessed as not meeting the expected standard, and since the pandemic over 800,000 pupils have not met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths following assessment. 

The diagram below helps to illustrate how achievement in the three individual subjects is combined into the headline metric of the ‘percentage of pupils that meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined)’. 

The Venn diagram shows the percentages of all eligible pupils who were assessed as meeting the expected standard for combinations of the three subjects. For example, 5.0% of pupils met the standard in reading and maths but not in writing and 3.1% of pupils met the standard in reading only. The centre of the diagram are the 62.1% of pupils that met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined). 

The first box on the left outside of the Venn diagram shows that 8.5% of pupils were assessed in all 3 of the individual subjects and were assessed as not meeting the expected standard in all 3 subjects.​

Pupils that were not assessed

On the right hand side, the boxes show that a total of 8.5% of pupils at the end of key stage 2 were not assessed in all 3 subjects (either because they were below the level of the assessment or for another reason). These pupils could still be meeting the standard for some subjects.

0.6% of pupils were not below the standard, but were not assessed or do not have a result in at least one subject for other reasons, for example, they were unable to access the test even with suitable access arrangements, had just arrived from a different education system, had a missing result, or an outcome was pending a maladministration case.​ 

Working below the level of assessment 

7.9% were working below the level of assessment in at least one subject and so did not take the test or the writing teacher assessment. ​This is where the school has deemed that the pupil is working below the overall standard of the assessments, such that a different assessment is required. These pupils could still be meeting the standard for some subjects. 

The table below shows that 47% of the pupils in this group were only below the level of assessment in writing. 42% of pupils in this group were deemed to be below the level of assessment in all 3 subjects . 

Of the 42% of pupils that were below the level of assessment in all 3 subjects, 85% were assessed using pre-key stage standards in all 3 subjects and 13% were assessed using the engagement model in all 3 subjects. The remainder used a combination of these alternate assessment methods. 

In 2024, in state-funded schools, 82% of pupils that were working below the level of assessment in at least one subject had a special educational need. 

Pupils that were below the level of assessment, broken down by subject, 2025
Number of subjects that the pupil is working below the level of assessment inSubjects working below the level of assessmentPupil countPupil percent
1Maths5921%
1Writing23,93847%
1Reading4571%
2Reading and Maths1,8304%
2Writing and Maths7221%
2Reading and Writing2,0374%
3Reading, Writing and Maths21,34242%

Trends over time

The percentage of pupils that were assessed as not meeting the standard in reading, writing and maths (combined) has reduced this year to 29.4% compared to 31.1% in 2024. The percentage of pupils working below the level of assessment in at least 1 subject was 5.2% prior to the pandemic in 2019, and has increased every year to 7.9% in 2025. This suggests that, whilst the proportion of pupils meeting the expected standard has been increasing, increases in pupils working below the level of assessment are also driving the reduction in the percentage of pupils not meeting the standard in reading, writing and maths (combined) following assessment. 

Attainment in individual subjects

In reading, 75% of pupils reached the expected standard in 2025, up from 74% in 2024. This figure has fluctuated between 72% and 75% since 2017. 

In writing teacher assessment, 72% of pupils met the expected standard, an increase of 0.5 percentage points from 72% (rounded) in 2024. Attainment in writing is not directly comparable to some earlier years (2016 and 2017) because of changes to writing teacher assessment frameworks in 2018. 

In maths, 74% of pupils reached the expected standard, up from 73% in 2024. 

Attainment amongst reading, writing and maths was lowest in writing, this has been the same since 2022. Before the pandemic, with the exception of 2018 where it was the same as maths, attainment amongst these three subjects was lowest in reading. 

In grammar, punctuation and spelling, 73% of pupils met the expected standard, up from 72% in 2024.

In science teacher assessment, 82% of pupils reached the expected standard in 2025, up from 81% in 2024. Attainment in science is not directly comparable to some earlier years (2016, 2017 and 2018) because of changes to science teacher assessment frameworks in 2019. 

Average scaled scores in reading, maths, and grammar, punctuation and spelling

We use scaled scores (opens in a new tab) (opens in a new tab) to report the results of tests so we can make accurate comparisons of performance over time. Scaled scores range from 80 to 120. The total number of marks a pupil achieves in each test subject (raw score) is converted into a scaled score to ensure accurate comparisons can be made over time, even if the difficulty of the test itself varies. 

The average scaled scores for reading and maths increased this year for the first time since 2022, whereas the average scaled score for grammar, punctuation and spelling has remained the same since 2022. 

In reading, the average scaled score is 106, up from 105 in 2024.

In maths, the average scaled score is 105, up from 104 in 2024.

In grammar, punctuation and spelling, the average scaled score is 105, unchanged since 2022. 

The average scaled score is the mean scaled score of all pupils awarded a scaled score. It only includes pupils who took the test and achieved a scaled score. It gives us a measure of the typical performance of a pupil taking the tests. It is affected by the performance of pupils at all points in the range of scores. By contrast, the percentage of pupils achieving the expected standard focuses on the proportion of pupils above or below one particular score (100). As a consequence, changes in one measure may not be matched by changes in the other measure of the same size and direction.

About these statistics

This publication provides headline statistics for attainment in key stage 2 national curriculum assessments for pupils in schools in England. It provides key figures at national level to help schools and parents put results in context.

1. The expected standard

Key stage 2 assessments tell us if pupils have met the expected standard in five subjects by the end of primary school:

  • reading
  • maths
  • writing
  • grammar, punctuation and spelling 
  • science

Tests are used to assess pupils in reading, maths and grammar, punctuation and spelling. Teacher assessment is used to assess pupils in writing and science. In addition to the individual subjects we report on pupils who meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. 

In the tests, pupils meet the expected standard if they achieve a scaled score of 100 or more. The test frameworks (opens in a new tab) (opens in a new tab) provide performance descriptors for the typical characteristics of pupils working at the expected standard.

The teacher assessment frameworks (opens in a new tab) (opens in a new tab) include ‘pupil can’ statements. For example, ‘the pupil can maintain legibility in joined handwriting when writing at speed’. To meet the expected standard, the teacher must judge there to be evidence that the pupil can meet all of the relevant statements.

DfE raised the expected standard in 2016 (opens in a new tab) (opens in a new tab), following the introduction of a new, more challenging national curriculum in 2014.

Pupils not meeting the expected standard

It is incorrect to say that pupils who have not met the expected standard in reading cannot read, or that those who have not met the expected standard in writing cannot write, and so on.

There is a spectrum of attainment among pupils who do not meet the expected standard, with some coming close and others further away.

A pupil who achieves below the expected standard will still be able to read. For example, they may be able to retrieve simple information from a text but be unable to make developed inferences about what they have read.

We also classify pupils as not meeting the expected standard when it has not been possible to assess their ability, for example, because of absence. This is the case for less than 1% of pupils.

2. Technical information

National curriculum assessment figures published here are based on test and teacher assessment data provided to the Department by the Standards and Testing Agency on 5 July 2025. 

This data contained all available marked key stage 2 tests and teacher assessments:

  • Reading test: 100%
  • Maths test: 99.9%
  • Grammar, punctuation and spelling test: 99.9%
  • Writing teacher assessment: 98.4%
  • Science teacher assessment: 98.4%

See the methodology for further detail.

Further information will be available

Further provisional statistics will be published in early September 2025 in the 'Key stage 2 attainment (provisional)’ publication. 

Revised figures will be published in the 'Key stage 2 attainment (revised)’ publication in December 2025. 

1. National level figures broken down by pupil and school characteristics

National level data with pupil characteristics breakdowns, including data broken down by gender, ethnicity, month of birth, free school meal eligibility, special educational needs provision, first language, disadvantage and the disadvantage gap index, will be published in the provisional publication in September.

School characteristics breakdowns, including school type, phase, cohort size and religious character, will also be published in September.

2. Regional, local authority and local authority district level figures

Regional, local authority and local authority district level data - including data broken down by gender, ethnicity, free school meal eligibility, special educational needs provision, first language and disadvantage - will be published in the provisional publication in September.

3. Progress measures

Progress measures will not be published for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 academic years as KS2 pupils in these years did not have KS1 assessments due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

4. School level figures

School level data will be published on the Find School and College Performance data website in December.

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Methodology

Find out how and why we collect, process and publish these statistics.

Accredited official statistics

These accredited official statistics have been independently reviewed by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR). They comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics. Accredited official statistics are called National Statistics in the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007.

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If you have a specific enquiry about Key stage 2 attainment: National headlines statistics and data:

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Email: Primary.ATTAINMENT@education.gov.uk
Contact name: Lilian Williams

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