New national attainment data released two years after the first lockdown reveals that some pupil groups have suffered greater ‘losses’ to their learning. Stephan Nicholls gives us an overview


When schools had to close their gates to most pupils in March 2020, heads and teachers went to extraordinary lengths to keep pupils engaged through months of staggered start times, class bubbles and waves of staff and pupil absence.

However, two years of disruption to formal education have taken their toll on children’s learning.

Data in the from the National Dataset Report 2022, published by Juniper Education, compares the attainment of primary school children in autumn 2019 – before Covid-19 entered our lives – with key points in time up to autumn 2021. It involves data from more than 6,000 schools encompassing more than 500,000 pupils and looks at the percentage of pupils who are achieving or exceeding age-related expectations in reading, writing and maths.

Register now, read forever

Thank you for visiting Headteacher Update and reading some of our content for professionals in primary education. Register now for free to get unlimited access to all content.

What's included:

  • Unlimited access to news, best practice articles and podcasts

  • New content and e-bulletins delivered straight to your inbox every Monday

Register

Already have an account? Sign in here