Key stage 2 attainment
Key stage 2 attainment statistics by pupil characteristics, school characteristics, region and local authority.
Quick links
- Published
Headline facts and figures
Expected standard reading, writing and maths (combined)
63%
up from 62% in 2025
Higher standard reading, writing and maths (combined)
9%
up from 8% in 2025
Disadvantage gap index
3.22
up from 3.16 in 2025
Expected standard reading
75%
unchanged from 2025
Expected standard writing
73%
up from 72% in 2025
Expected standard maths
75%
up from 74% in 2025
These statistics cover the attainment of year 6 pupils who took assessments in summer 2026. These pupils experienced disruption to their learning during the pandemic, particularly at the end of year 1 and in year 2. Attainment in all subjects, other than reading, has not returned to pre-pandemic levels.
Attainment in all of reading, writing and maths (combined) has increased since 2025.
In all of reading, writing and maths, 63% of pupils met the expected standard, up from 62% in 2025.
Attainment increased or remained stable in all subjects compared to 2025.
In reading, 75% of pupils met the expected standard, unchanged from 2025.
In maths, 75% of pupils met the expected standard, up from 74% in 2025.
In writing, 73% of pupils met the expected standard, up from 72% in 2025.
In grammar, punctuation and spelling, 74% of pupils met the expected standard, up from 73% in 2025.
In science, 82% of pupils met the expected standard, unchanged from 2025.
Girls continue to outperform boys at the expected standard in all subjects except maths, where boys outperformed girls by 1 percentage point.
The disadvantage gap index has increased from 3.16 in 2025 to 3.22 in 2026. More detail is provided in the pupil characteristics section.
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).
Attainment in reading, writing and maths (combined)
In 2026, 63% of pupils met the expected standard in all of reading, writing and maths, up from 62% in 2025. This is a 1.0 percentage point increase. 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) increased to 9% from 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.
For the purposes of this section, the terms “following assessment” and “assessed” refer to the reading and maths tests and the teacher assessment of writing used for pupils working at the level of the key stage 2 curriculum, who are assessed using the standard key stage 2 tests and teacher assessment guidance. Pupils deemed to be working below the requirements set out in the key stage 2 national curriculum assessments in one or more subjects are assessed using pre-key stage standards and/or the engagement model (included in ‘other circumstances’).
Pupils that were assessed against the key stage 2 curriculum
In 2026, 63.3% of pupils met the expected standard in all of reading, writing and maths. Roughly 3 in 10 pupils (28.0%) at the end of key stage 2 were assessed as not meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined). The remaining 8.7% of pupils were unable to meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths for other reasons (including those working below the requirements of the curriculum, absence, or for another reason). This year, 181,771 pupils were assessed as not meeting the expected standard.
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, 4.6% of pupils met the standard in reading and maths but not in writing and 2.8% of pupils met the standard in reading only. The centre of the diagram are the 63.3% 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 7.9% of pupils were assessed at the level of the key stage 2 curriculum in all three of the individual subjects and did not meet the expected standard in any of the three subjects.
Other circumstances
On the right-hand side, the boxes show that a total of 8.7% of pupils at the end of key stage 2 were unable to meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths for other reasons (either because they were working below the requirements of the curriculum, absent, or for another reason). These pupils could still be meeting the standard for some subjects.
0.6% of pupils were not below the requirements of the curriculum, but were not assessed or do not have a result in at least one subject for other reasons, for example, they were absent, 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 requirements of the curriculum
8.1% of pupils were working below the requirements of the curriculum in at least one subject and so did not take the test or the writing teacher assessment against the relevant standard. This is where the school has deemed that the pupil is working below the overall standard of the key stage 2 curriculum for a subject, such that a different assessment is required. These pupils could still be meeting the standard for other subjects. Pupils working below the requirements of the curriculum but engaged in subject-specific study will receive teacher assessments against the pre-key stage 2 standards (opens in new tab). Pupils working below the requirements of the curriculum and not engaged in subject-specific study will be assessed using the engagement model (opens in new tab).
The table below shows that 48% of the pupils in this group were only below the requirements of the curriculum in writing. 43% of pupils in this group were deemed to be below the requirements of the curriculum in all three subjects.
Of the 43% of pupils that were below the requirements of the curriculum in all three subjects, 85% were assessed using pre-key stage standards in all three subjects and 15% were assessed using the engagement model in all 3 subjects. The remainder used a combination of these alternate assessment methods.
In 2026, in state-funded schools, 84% of pupils that were working below the requirements of the curriculum in at least one subject had a special educational need.
Pupils that were below the level of assessment, broken down by subject, 2026 (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 | 516 | 1% |
| 1 | Writing | 25,196 | 48% |
| 1 | Reading | 329 | 1% |
| 2 | Reading and Maths | 1,398 | 3% |
| 2 | Writing and Maths | 563 | 1% |
| 2 | Reading and Writing | 2,110 | 4% |
| 3 | Reading, Writing and Maths | 22,434 | 43% |
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 28.0% compared to 29.3% in 2025. The percentage of pupils working below the requirements of the curriculum in at least 1 subject was 5.1% prior to the pandemic in 2019, and has increased every year to 8.1% in 2026. While the proportion of pupils meeting the expected standard has increased steadily since tests and assessments returned post-pandemic, we are also seeing increases in the proportion of pupils working below the requirements of the curriculum. This may partly explain why the proportion of pupils meeting the expected standard is still below pre-pandemic levels.
When looking at subject trends, prior to the pandemic, for pupils that were assessed in all 3 subjects, reading was the subject that prevented them from meeting the combined subject (7%). However, since the pandemic, writing has become the subject that is most commonly preventing pupils from meeting the standards in the combined metric. In 2019, only 3% of pupils met the standard in reading and maths but not in writing, this has now increased to 5%, whereas pupils that met the standard in writing and maths but not reading has fallen to 4%.
Combinations by disadvantage status
36.6% of disadvantaged pupils did not meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined) following assessment, this compares to 23.9% of non disadvantaged pupils. 14.9% of disadvantaged pupils were unable to meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths for other reasons (either because they were working below the requirements of the curriculum, absent, or for another reason), compared to 5.7% of non disadvantaged pupils.
For disadvantaged pupils, 12.5% were assessed as not meeting the expected standard in all 3 of the individual subjects, this compares to 5.7% of non disadvantaged pupils.
Another key difference shown is that a higher percentage of disadvantaged pupils are working below the requirements of the curriculum in at least one subject and so did not take the test or the writing teacher assessment against the relevant standard (13.9%, 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 (44.6%) of pupils with SEN are assessed as not meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined). A further 28.1% of pupils with SEN are working below the requirements of the curriculum in at least one subject.
For pupils with an EHC plan, 25.3% are assessed as not meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined). A further 61.9% of pupils with an EHCP are working below the requirements of the curriculum in at least one subject.
For pupils on SEN Support, 51.6% are assessed as not meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined). A further 16.0% of pupils with SEN Support are working below the requirements of the curriculum in at least one subject.
18.5% of pupil with SEN are assessed as not meeting the expected standard in all 3 of the individual subjects, with a further 12.9% 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 21.1% of pupils are assessed as not meeting the expected standard in all 3 of the individual subjects, compared to 11.5% of pupils with an EHCP.
Attainment in individual subjects
In reading, 75% of pupils reached the expected standard in 2026, unchanged from 2025. 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, 73% of pupils met the expected standard, up from 72% in 2025. 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, 75% of pupils reached the expected standard, up from 74% in 2025.
Attainment amongst reading, writing and maths was lowest in writing, this has been the same since 2022. Before the pandemic attainment amongst these three subjects was lowest in reading.
In grammar, punctuation and spelling, 74% of pupils met the expected standard, up from 73% in 2025.
In science teacher assessment, 82% of pupils reached the expected standard in 2026, unchanged from 2025. Attainment in science is not directly comparable to some earlier years because of changes to science teacher assessment frameworks in 2019.
Attainment at the higher standard
In reading, 31% of pupils met the higher standard, down from 33% in 2025.
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, 27% of pupils met the higher standard, up from 26% in 2025.
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, unchanged 2025.
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 new tab) (opens in 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 is unchanged from 2025, whereas the average scaled score for grammar, punctuation and spelling has remained the same since 2022.
In reading, the average scaled score is 106, unchanged from 2025.
In maths, the average scaled score is 105, unchanged from 2025.
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 2026, except for maths where boys performed slightly better (1 percentage point difference). In reading, 78% of girls (unchanged since 2024) met the expected standard and 72% of boys met the expected standard, unchanged from 2025.
The biggest attainment gap between boys and girls remains in writing teacher assessment at 11 percentage points.
In reading, writing and maths (combined) in 2026, 67% of girls met the expected standard compared to 60% of boys, a gap of 6 percentage points .
Attainment at the higher standard
The largest gap is in maths: 32% of boys and 22% of girls met the higher standard, a gap of 9 percentage points in 2026 unchanged from 2025. The gap between boys and girls maths performance has been increasing in recent years.
The gap between boys and girls increased in reading from 5 percentage points in 2025 to 6 percentage points in 2026.
In writing, 10% of boys and 16% of girls were assessed as greater depth, a gap of 6 percentage points unchanged since 2024.
In 2026, 10% of girls met the higher standard in reading, writing and maths (combined), up from 9% in 2025. Among boys, 8% met the higher standard, up from 7% in 2025. Based on unrounded data, the gap at the higher standard remained at 2 percentage points in 2026, 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 increased from 3.16 in 2025 to 3.22 in 2026. 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 2026, 33% of pupils at the end of key stage 2 were considered disadvantaged.
In reading, writing and maths (combined), 49% of disadvantaged pupils met the expected standard in 2026 compared to 70% of other pupils, keeping the gap at 22 percentage points.
In 2026, 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 remained stable for both groups, however, there was a slight decrease of 0.5 percentage points for disadvantage pupils. Attainment in maths and writing increased for both groups. Only in reading is attainment at or above levels seen before the pandemic (with an increase of 1 percentage point for disadvantaged pupils, and 3 percentage points for non-disadvantaged pupils since 2019).
The disadvantage gap in 2026 is similar across subjects, ranging from 18 percentage points in reading, 17 percentage points in 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 2026, 24% 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 2026, 6% of all pupils had an EHCP and 18% were on SEN support.
In 2026, 26% of pupils with SEN provision met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined), up from 24% in 2025. Of those pupils on SEN support/SEN without an EHC plan, 31% met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined), up from 29% in 2025, whilst 10% of those pupils with an Education, Health and Care plan met the standard, up from 9% in 2025.
Attainment by first language
In 2026, 24% of pupils at the end of key stage 2 had a first language other than English.
In 2026, 66% of pupils with first language other than English met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined), up from 64% in 2025. Among pupils with English as their first language, 63% met the expected standard, up from 62% in 2025.
In reading, 76% of pupils with English as their first language met the expected standard unchanged from 2025. Among pupils with first language other than English, 74% met the expected standard unchanged from 2025. The gap in reading attainment between pupils with English as a first language and a first language other than English has narrowed to 1 percentage point.
In writing, 73% of pupils with English as their first language met the expected standard, up from 72% in 2025. Among pupils with first language other than English, 75% met the expected standard in writing, up from 73% in 2025.
In maths, 74% of pupils with English as their first language met the expected standard, up from 73% in 2025. Among pupils with first language other than English, 79% met the expected standard in maths, up from 78% in 2025. 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 2026, Chinese pupils are the highest performing group in reading, writing and maths (combined), with 82% of pupils meeting the expected standard. The second highest performing group is Indian pupils (76%).
Gypsy pupils were the lowest performing group, with 24% meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (combined).
Attainment by month of birth
In 2026, pupils born in September were the highest achieving group in reading, writing and maths (combined), with 70% of pupils meeting the expected standard. Pupils born in August were the lowest achieving group, with 57% 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 15,369 state-funded mainstream primary schools with key stage 2 results in 2026.
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 51% in 2026. There have been corresponding increases in the proportion of sponsor led and converter academies, to 12% and 36% respectively in 2026. 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 257 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 2026 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 2025. 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.
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 2026.
School level figures
School level data will be published in December.
Progress measures
Progress measures were not 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.
The KS1 to KS2 progress measures will return for 2025/26 in the revised publication in December.
Contact us
If you have a specific enquiry about Key stage 2 attainment statistics and data:
Primary Attainment Statistics
Email: Primary.Attainment@education.gov.ukContact name: Lilian Williams
Press office
If you have a media enquiry:
Telephone: 020 7783 8300
Public enquiries
If you have a general enquiry about the Department for Education (DfE) or education:
Phone: 0370 000 2288
Opening times
Monday to Friday from 9.30am to 5.30pm (closed on bank holidays)