Grammar head: ‘Don’t jump to conclusions over 11-plus’

Philip Wayne, who is also headteacher at Chesham Grammar School, will speak before the council’s education select committee at County Hall on Wednesday.

It comes after a breakdown of the supposedly more ‘coach-proof’ 11-plus was released.

It showed that Aylesbury Vale was the worst performing district in Bucks, with only 16% of children here passing the exam.

This was followed by Wycombe (22%), South Bucks (38%) and Chilterns (42%).

The ranking correlates with the districts’ average weekly earnings (Vale, £563; Wycombe, £598; South Bucks, £629; Chiltern, £652)

In a report to councillors, Mr Wayne said grammar schools recognise that they have a responsibility to promote social mobility and to ensure that they give opportunities to students from all backgrounds.

But he said a single year’s data should not be used to make claims about how the test disadvantages poorer children.

He said his organisation is considering commissioning a longer-term study to examine the issue.

He said there’s no such thing as a ‘tutor proof’ test, but the new ones are ‘less susceptible to the impact of specific test tutoring’.