Education system 'letting working class children down,' admits Schools minister

Speaking to LBC's Tom Swarbrick, Ms McKinnell said that poorer life chances of white working class children is a "persistent problem" across Britain.

"They're not getting the outcomes out of the system that they need to then move on to the next stage," she said.

This is why the government is "absolutely focused on changing that from the very early years".

It is doing so by investing in Best Start family hubs, high quality early years provision, through to breakfast clubs to make sure "children from all backgrounds get that really good start to the school day," Ms McKinnell added.

Her comments come after Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said that white working-class children risked being "written off" by society.

Ms Phillipson warned "far too many" are failing to get the necessary exam results, branding the situation a "national disgrace".

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Data from the think tank Institute for Government (IfG) revealed that councils in the bottom fifth for performance are “disproportionately likely” to have a greater share of students from white, poorer backgrounds.

But to improve their chances, Ms McKinnell said her department is also "investing in preschool meals for more children on universal credit".

It is also "working on attendance, working on attainment, supporting children in very targeted ways to improve their outcomes at school," she said.

Ms Mckinnell added: "It does start in the early years because we recognise these are really entrenched inequalities.

"These go back, you know, years that have not been addressed. So there have been improvements across our school system that have driven strong outcomes for many children and they will be celebrating today, and rightly so, and very proud.

"But for those that are still not getting those outcomes that are giving them that stepping stone to what comes next. That's where we are really focused as well, making sure that we have a school system that delivers for them."

It comes as thousands of pupils acorss the UK celebrate exam results today.

One in five GCSE students are set to celebrates after receiving top grades - despite the overall pass rate falling again across the UK.

Ms McKinnell told LBC: "I know how exciting a day this is for young people.

"I'm sure there are a lot of nerves as well as they wait for their results, but actually, I think we have a real steadying of the ship in terms of results and outcomes, which is really welcome for us as a nation, that we have managed to rebuild from what has been quite a challenging period for education in terms of the pandemic and the impacts subsequent to that.

"So I think it is a real day of celebration and young people can rightly be very proud of their resilience and the schools and their families as well that have supported them."