Academic year 2024/25

Key stage 2 attainment

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• Published: 11 September 2025
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This publication provides provisional attainment  statistics for key stage 2 national curriculum assessments in England. This data extends the Key stage 2: National headlines  published on 8 July 2025 

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

 It includes results for pupils in schools in England:

• at national level, broken down by the following pupil characteristics: sex, disadvantage, free school meal eligibility, ethnicity, special educational need status (including primary need), first language and month of birth;
• at national level, broken down by the following school characteristics: school type, school phase, cohort size and school religious character;
• at regional and local authority level, broken down by pupil characteristics: sex, disadvantage, free school meal eligibility, ethnicity, special educational need status and first language;
• at local authority district level for school location and pupil residency, broken down by disadvantage, free school meal eligibility and school type.

Some of these breakdowns are not discussed in the text but can be accessed via the table tool or by downloading the data files.

All gaps and percentage point differences are calculated from unrounded figures. 

Progress measures will not be published for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 academic years as KS2 pupils in these years did not have KS1 assessments due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

All of the underlying data files associated with this publication are now available in our new API, which allows users to connect to data directly from data manipulation and visualisation tools such as PowerBI, Python and R.  View the available data products in the data catalogue or read our API documentation (opens in a new tab).

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• Academic year 2023/24
• Academic year 2022/23
• Academic year 2021/22

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• Key stage 2 attainment

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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.

The percentage of pupils meeting the higher standard in reading, writing, and maths (combined) remained at 8% in 2025, unchanged from 2023 and 2024.

Attainment in all of reading, writing and maths (combined) is not directly comparable to some earlier years (2016 and 2017) because of changes to the writing teacher assessment frameworks in 2018.

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 8.4% 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 188,741 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 62.2% 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 8.4% 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.

Working below the level of assessment 

7.8% 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, 86% were assessed using pre-key stage standards in all 3 subjects and 14% were assessed using the engagement model in all 3 subjects. The remainder used a combination of these alternate assessment methods. 

In 2025, in state-funded schools, 81% of pupils that were working below the level of assessment in at least one subject had a special educational need. 

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.​ 

Pupils that were below the level of assessment, broken down by subject, 2025 (England, State-funded schools)

Number of subjects that the pupil is working below the level of assessment in	Subjects working below the level of assessment	Pupil count	Pupil percent
1	Maths	592	1%
1	Writing	23,933	47%
1	Reading	457	1%
2	Reading and Maths	1,823	4%
2	Writing and Maths	721	1%
2	Reading and Writing	2,035	4%
3	Reading, Writing and Maths	21,305	42%

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 5.1% prior to the pandemic in 2019, and has increased every year to 7.8% 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. 

Combinations by disadvantage status

38.4% of disadvantaged pupils did not meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined) following assessment, this compares to 25.2% of non disadvantaged pupils. 14.2% of disadvantaged pupils were not assessed in all 3 of the individual subjects, compared to 5.7% of non disadvantaged pupils. 

For disadvantaged pupils, 13.4% were assessed as not meeting the expected standard in all 3 of the individual subjects, this compares to 6.2% of non disadvantaged pupils.  

Another key difference shown is that a higher percentage of disadvantaged pupils are working below the level of assessment in at least one subject (13.3%, compared to 5.3% of non disadvantaged pupils). This reflects the higher proportion of SEN pupils within the disadvantaged cohort.

Combinations by special education needs status

When considering these combinations by special educational need (SEN), it is worth noting the proportion of pupils that are working below the level of assessment in at least one subject, as this is larger for pupils with SEN (particularly those with an Education, Health and Care Plan ), and impacts all other figures within the Venn diagrams. 

Almost half (46.5%) of pupils with SEN are assessed as not meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined). A further 28.3% of pupils with SEN are working below the level of assessment in at least one subject. 

For pupils with an EHC plan, 24.9% are assessed as not meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined). A further  63.8% of pupils with an EHCP are working below the level of assessment in at least one subject. 

For pupils on SEN Support, 53.8% are assessed as not meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined). A further  16.4% of pupils with SEN Support are working below the level of assessment in at least one subject. 

20.1% of pupil with SEN are assessed as not meeting the expected standard in all 3 of the individual subjects, with a further 13.0% of pupils with SEN only meeting the expected standard in one subject. 

This varies considerably between those on SEN support and those with an EHCP. Of pupils on SEN support 22.9% of pupils are assessed as not meeting the expected standard in all 3 of the individual subjects, compared to 11.8% of pupils with an EHCP. 

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.  This is the only subject that has returned and improved on pre-pandemic figures (73% in 2019). 

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. 

Attainment at the higher standard

In reading, 33% of pupils met the higher standard, up from 29% in 2024. This is the highest this figure has been since the first assessments using the new national curriculum in 2016. 

In writing teacher assessment, 13% of pupils achieved greater depth, unchanged since 2022. Before the pandemic, in both 2018 and 2019, this figure was 20%. 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, 26% of pupils met the higher standard, up from 24% in 2024. 

Among reading, writing and maths, attainment at the higher standard is highest in reading. From 2016 to 2018, reading was also highest. In 2019, reading and maths were highest at 27%. Attainment of the higher standard in these three subjects remains lowest in writing. 

In grammar, punctuation and spelling, 30% of pupils met the higher standard, down from 32% in 2024. 

There is no higher standard for science.

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) (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.

Attainment by pupil characteristics

This section looks at key stage 2 attainment by sex, disadvantage, special educational need (SEN) status, first language, ethnicity and month of birth. 

The figures for disadvantaged pupils in this publication are provisional and do not include pupils in the care of a local authority unless they were eligible for free school meals during the last 6 years or ceased to be looked-after in the last year. This will be updated in the revised publication in December. 

Attainment by sex

Girls continue to outperform boys at the expected standard in all subjects in 2025, except for maths where boys performed slightly better (1 percentage point difference). In reading, 78% of girls (unchanged from 2024) met the expected standard and 72% of boys met the expected standard, up from 71% in 2024. 

The biggest attainment gap between boys and girls remains in writing teacher assessment at 12 percentage points. 

In reading, writing and maths (combined) in 2025, 65% of girls met the expected standard compared to 59% of boys, a gap of 6 percentage points .

Attainment at the higher standard 

Among individual subjects at the higher standard, the gap between boys and girls decreased in reading from 7 percentage points in 2024 to 5 percentage points in 2025.

In maths, 30% of boys and 22% of girls met the higher standard, a gap of 8 percentage points in 2025 up from 5 percentage points in 2024.

In writing, 10% of boys and 16% of girls were assessed as greater depth, a gap of 6 percentage points unchanged since 2024.

In 2025, 9% of girls met the higher standard in reading, writing and maths (combined), unchanged since 2024. Among boys, 7% met the higher standard, up from 6% in 2024. Based on unrounded data, the gap at the higher standard remained at 2 percentage points in 2025, unchanged since 2023.

Disadvantage gap index 

Disadvantaged pupils are ordinarily defined as: those who were registered as eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years, children looked after by a local authority or have left local authority care in England and Wales through adoption, a special guardianship order, a residence order or a child arrangements order.  

The disadvantage gap index summarises the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and all other pupils.

The gap index is more resilient to changes to assessment than attainment threshold measures and therefore offers greater comparability between years. The index ranks all pupils in the country and assesses the difference in the average position of disadvantaged pupils and others. A disadvantage gap of zero would indicate that there is no difference between the average performance of disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged pupils. We measure whether the disadvantage gap is getting larger or smaller over time. Note that changes to free school meal eligibility in place from April 2018 affect the disadvantaged cohort. See the methodology for further information. 

The statistics about disadvantage in this publication are provisional and do not include pupils in the care of a local authority - unless they were eligible for free school meals during the last 6 years or ceased to be looked-after in the last year. These pupils will be included in revised disadvantage statistics in December. We expect this to have a small impact on the disadvantage gap index (an increase of around 0.02 in the gap index in recent years).

The disadvantage gap index has remained stable with a slight increase from 3.13 in 2024 to 3.14 in 2025. The gap index reduced between 2011 and 2018 - indicating that the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers was becoming smaller - before remaining at a similar level between 2018 and 2019 and increasing in 2022 to the highest level since 2012. 

Attainment by disadvantage status

Disadvantaged pupils are ordinarily defined as: those who were registered as eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years, children looked after by a local authority or have left local authority care in England and Wales through adoption, a special guardianship order, a residence order or a child arrangements order. 

Note that changes to free school meal eligibility in place from April 2018 affect the disadvantaged cohort. See the methodology for further information. 

In 2025, 32% of pupils at the end of key stage 2 were considered disadvantaged.

In reading, writing and maths (combined), 47% of disadvantaged pupils met the expected standard in 2025 compared to 69% of other pupils, keeping the gap at 22 percentage points.

In 2025, 4% of disadvantaged pupils met the higher standard in reading, writing and maths (combined), while 11% of other pupils met the higher standard. 

Attainment in reading has increased compared to 2024 for both groups. Attainment in writing increased for non-disadvantaged pupils but remained at the same level as 2024 for disadvantaged pupils, whilst attainment in maths increased compared to 2024 for both groups. Only in reading is attainment at or above levels seen before the pandemic (equal for disadvantaged pupils, with an increase of 2 percentage point for non-disadvantaged pupils)

The disadvantage gap in 2025 is similar across subjects, ranging from 17 percentage points in reading and science, 19 percentage points in writing and grammar, punctuation and spelling to 20 percentage points in maths. 

Attainment by Special Educational Need (SEN) status

In 2025, 22% of pupils at the end of key stage 2 had a special educational need (SEN). Pupils with SEN either have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or receive SEN support. In 2025, 6% of all pupils had an EHCP and 17% were on SEN support.

In 2025, 24% of pupils with SEN provision met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined), up from 22% in 2024. Of those pupils on SEN support/SEN without an EHC plan, 29% met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined), up from 26% in 2024, whilst 9% of those pupils with an Education, Health and Care plan met the standard, unchanged since 2024. 

Attainment by first language 

In 2025, 23% of pupils at the end of key stage 2 had a first language other than English.

In 2025, 64% of pupils with first language other than English met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined), up from 62% in 2024 and returning to the 2019 figure of  64%. Among pupils with English as their first language, 62% met the expected standard, up from 60% in 2024.

In reading, attainment for pupils with English as their first language increased from 75% in 2024 to 76% in 2025 and pupils with first language other than English increased from 72% in 2024 to 74% in 2025. The gap in reading attainment between pupils with English as a first language and a first language other than English has narrowed to 2 percentage points. 

In writing, 72% of pupils with English as their first language met the expected standard, unchanged since 2023. Among pupils with first language other than English, 73% met the expected standard in writing, up from 72% in 2024. 

In maths, 73% of pupils with English as their first language met the expected standard, up from 72% in 2024. Among pupils with first language other than English, 78% met the expected standard in maths, up from 77% in 2024. At 5 percentage points this was the largest gap across individual subjects.

Attainment by ethnicity

Attainment at the end of key stage 2 varies by ethnicity.

In 2025, Chinese pupils are the highest performing group in reading, writing and maths (combined), with 79% of pupils meeting the expected standard. The second highest performing group is Indian pupils (74%). 

Gypsy and Irish Traveller pupils were the lowest performing groups, with 20% meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined).

Attainment by month of birth

In 2025, pupils born in September were the highest achieving group in reading, writing and maths (combined), with 69% of pupils meeting the expected standard. Pupils born in August were the lowest achieving group, with 55% meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined). This trend is also seen across the individual subjects of reading, writing and maths.

Attainment by school characteristics

There were 15,370 state-funded mainstream primary schools with key stage 2 results in 2025. 

Since 2016, there have been substantial changes to the makeup of school types in England. The proportion of Local authority maintained schools decreased from 82% in 2016 to 54% in 2025. There have been corresponding increases in the proportion of sponsor led and converter academies, to 12% and 33% respectively in 2025. It should be noted that the conversion of schools from one type to another means that the headline figures capture not only change in performance but also change in school type. While the number of free schools has increased to 237 this year, free schools make up a very small proportion of schools (2%), therefore attainment scores may fluctuate more each year compared to other school types.

See the accompanying methodology for details about different types of school. 

Attainment in academies as a group in 2025 is broadly similar to those in local authority maintained mainstream schools. Academy converter had broadly similar proportions of pupils achieving the expected standard compared to the averages for all state-funded mainstream schools, this was also seen in 2024. Academy Sponsor led as a group, however, are below the average for state-funded mainstream schools but were typically low performing before their conversion to academy status. Free schools as a group, are the highest attaining, although represent a small proportion of state-funded mainstream schools.

Regional and local authority attainment

Note that differences in the methodology at national level compared to regional and local authority level may affect some statistics, including school and pupil numbers. See the methodology  for further information

Attainment by region

London was the highest performing region in 2025, as in previous years, with 68% of pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined). In all other regions, attainment in reading, writing and maths (combined) at the expected standard ranged between 59% and 61%. 

The gap between the highest (London) and lowest (South West) performing regions in 2025 was 9 percentage points. This is a slight reduction from 10 percentage points in 2024, with a decrease in London and an increase in the South West. 

Attainment at the  higher standard in reading, writing and maths (combined) was also higher in London than in all other regions, with 13% of pupils in London achieving the higher standard compared to between 7% and 8% in all other regions.

London was the highest performing region across all individual subjects. Yorkshire and The Humber & East Midlands were the lowest performing in reading. The South West is the lowest performing in maths. All regions except London (76%) and the North East (72%) are below the national average in writing (72%).

Attainment by local authority

The map below shows the percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined) by local authority. This map reveals a complex picture of attainment across England, with a range of high and low attainment in different regions.

Attainment at the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined) was highest in Hammersmith and Fulham and Hackney (76%) and lowest in Central Bedfordshire (50%) .

Similarly, attainment at  the higher standard (shown in the table below) was highest in Richmond upon Thames, Hammersmith and Fulham and Sutton (20%) and lowest in Portsmouth, Bedford and Central Bedfordshire (3%). 

Local authorities with only 1 school are excluded from the above narrative.

About these statistics

This publication provides provisional attainment statistics for key stage 2 national curriculum assessments. It provides statistics on: 

Reading, writing and maths (combined) attainment

Pupils who meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined) are those who meet the expected standard in all three subjects. The expected standard in reading and maths is a scaled score of 100 or above. The expected standard in writing is a teacher assessment of 'working at the expected standard' (EXS) or 'working at greater depth' (GDS).

Pupils who reach the higher standard in reading, writing and maths (combined) are those who achieve a scaled score of 110 or more in reading and maths and are assessed as 'working at greater depth' (GDS) in writing TA.

Reading test attainment

Pupils who meet the expected standard in reading are those who achieve a scaled score of 100 or above. Pupils who meet the higher standard in reading are those who achieve a scaled score of 110 or more. 

Writing teacher assessment attainment

Pupils who meet the expected standard in writing are those who achieve a teacher assessment of 'working at the expected standard' (EXS) or 'working at greater depth' (GDS).

Pupils who reach the higher standard (referred to as greater depth) in writing are those who are assessed as 'working at greater depth' (GDS). 

Maths test attainment

Pupils who meet the expected standard in maths are those who achieve a scaled score of 100 or above. Pupils who meet the higher standard in maths are those who achieve a scaled score of 110 or more. 

Grammar, punctuation and spelling test attainment

Pupils who meet the expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling are those who achieve a scaled score of 100 or above. Pupils who meet the higher standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling are those who achieve a scaled score of 110 or more. 

Science teacher assessment attainment

Pupils who meet the expected standard in science are those who achieve a teacher assessment of 'working at the expected standard' (EXS).

Further information will be available

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

School level figures

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

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.

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• Key stage 2 attainment

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