GOVERNMENT STILL FAILING TOO MANY LOCAL PUPILS - GIDLEY

12.00.00am GMT Thu 10th Jan 2008

Romsey's MP, Sandra Gidley, has today hit out hit out at the government as new figures show that nearly half of all pupils in Hampshire (49%) and as many as six out of ten pupils in Southampton leave school without five good GCSEs including English and maths.

Commenting from Westminster, Sandra said:

"I applaud those schools in the area that have seen good results. Unfortunately though, government policy is still failing too many local children by not guaranteeing them a decent education.

"It is disgraceful after ten years of record investment and countless new initiatives that huge numbers of local children are not able to achieve the benchmark of five good GCSEs including Maths and English.

"The government's target of having no school where more than seventy percent of children are failing to get these five good grades is hopelessly unambitious.

"Instead we urgently need to tackle the continuing educational chasm between affluent and deprived neighbourhoods and to make sure that money is channelled to those pupils that need it most."

ENDS