Addressing Education and Health Inequity: Perspectives From the North of England

This report by the Child of the North group highlights how children born into the poorest fifth of families in the UK are almost 13 times more likely to experience poor health and educational outcomes by the age of 17.

The report also highlights how northern schools are losing out on hundreds of pounds of funding per pupil compared to those in London.

Over the last 10 years, ongoing inequalities in funding have meant schools in the North of England have received less money from the National Funding Formula (NFF) on average than their southern counterparts.

The new analysis found that on average pupils in London received 9.7% more funding than those in the North.

Schools in London received an average of £6,610 per pupil compared to £6,225, £5,956, and £5,938 in the North East, North West, and Yorkshire and the Humber, respectively.

Children in the most affluent schools in the country had bigger real terms increases in funding than those in the most deprived ones, despite the increased burden placed on these schools due to wider societal issues that impact the families they serve.

This inequity corresponds with children in the North having higher school absences, including health and mental health absences, and educational performance is poorer.

The report also highlights that children born into the poorest fifth of families in the UK are almost 13 times more likely to experience poor health and educational outcomes by the age of 17.

This poses a risk for public services in future years, as the long-term consequences of poor education can not only impact physical and mental health, but can also place great pressure on the NHS, social care, and criminal justice system in future.

The report makes a number of recommendations, calling on the Government to alter the NFF so schools struggling with a greater “health burden” – where higher numbers of children are absent with health problems – or low attainment rates receive more funding.

Key Findings:

• Ongoing inequalities in funding have meant schools in the North of England have received less funding on average than their southern counterparts over the past decade.
• Children in the most affluent schools in the country had bigger real-terms increases in funding from the National Funding Formula between 2017 and 2022 (8–9%) than those in the most deprived ones (5%).
• NFF funding per pupil showed 4 percentage points less increase in real terms in the most-deprived primary schools (0.7%) compared to the least-deprived ones (4.8%) between 2017–18 and 2022–23, creating a lag in the reduction of the inequality gap.
• Schools in London received an average of £6,610 per pupil compared to £6,225, £5,956, and £5,938 in the North East, North West, and Yorkshire & The Humber, respectively. On average, pupils in London received 9.7% more funding than those in the North. Students in London achieve a third of a grade higher, on average, than students in the North.
• There are record numbers of school absences across the North of England. In the 2022/23 autumn term, school absence rates were greater in the North East (7.9%) and Yorkshire & The Humber (7.7%), compared to Outer London (7.0%) and Inner London (7.2%).
• Children are more likely to be persistently absent (missing more than 10% of school) in the North East (25.6%) and Yorkshire & The Humber (24.5%) compared to Outer London (23.1%) and Inner London (23.8%).
• The structural inequalities faced by children in the North of England are multifaceted and urgent action is required to address the concomitant educational funding inequality.
• The long-term consequences of poor educational attainment include poor physical and mental health, young people Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET), involvement in the criminal justice system and the need for long term social care.
• Children born into the poorest fifth of families in the UK are almost 13 times more likely to experience poor health and educational outcomes by the age of 17 years. Children from the lowest income households are five times more likely to experience poor academic achievement. Mitigating inequality in early childhood would reduce the number of children experiencing multiple adversities by more than 80%.

Recommendations:

• Allocate additional funding over 2025-30 to secondary and post-16 providers to address the lag before the new (fairer) National Funding Formula (NFF) takes effect. Implement the National Audit Office’s recommendation to “evaluate the impact” of the NFF.
• Address historical structural inequalities by immediately developing options to adjust the NFF to include the “health burden” borne by schools from 2025.
• Use schools and nurseries as “hubs” for delivering health services, especially within disadvantaged communities; providing support so they can help families meet the health needs of their children and young people (e.g., through funding family support workers).
• Create formal partnerships at local authority area level that enable schools, health services, police, local authorities, voluntary services, regional universities, faith leaders, and businesses to propel data driven, “whole system”, place-based approaches to improving social mobility, health, and education through schools and nurseries.
• Create connected datasets to support coordinated public service delivery. Use existing NHS England “Secure Data Environment” investment to enable trusted partners (e.g., N8+ research-intensive universities and Northern Health Science Alliance, Northern England NHS hospital trusts) to test-and-learn optimal methodologies for data connection before national adoption.
• Harness world-leading UK university research so local authorities and integrated care boards can base decisions on the best evidence (based on proven methodology from Northern England). Develop the “Chris Whitty model” where universities become the Research and Development departments of public services such as local authorities.
• Address the SEND crisis by working with schools to adopt the SUCCESS programme (Supporting Understanding of Children’s Communication, Emotional and Social Skills) to reduce the barriers families face in accessing autism services, diagnoses, and support.
• Use UK research expertise to implement the Electronic Developmental Support Tool from September 2024 so schools across the UK can identify and meet the learning and support needs of all children and young people while reducing reliance on specialist services.
• Act early to address problems before children enter school and avoid the long-term costs (e.g., NEET) associated with a lack of school readiness. Target investment to improve access to high-quality training for early years educators and health visitors to improve staff retention and uptake.

Link: Addressing Education and Health Inequity: Perspectives From the North of England