Schools and education: your questions answered
School performance tables, GCSE results, teacher and pupil numbers, and how to use Explore Education Statistics.
Where can I find official GCSE results statistics?
The Department for Education publishes key stage 4 performance statistics each year for England, with results by school, local authority and pupil characteristics such as disadvantage. Ofqual publishes the distribution of grades and analysis of each exam series.
The grading system changed from A* to G to 9 to 1 between 2017 and 2020, and grades were awarded differently in 2020 and 2021, so comparisons across those years need care.
How many children get free school meals?
The number and share of pupils eligible for free school meals is published each June in the Department for Education's "Schools, pupils and their characteristics" release, by school and local authority.
How many teachers are there in England?
The Department for Education's "School workforce in England" statistics, published each June, count teachers and support staff in state-funded schools as headcount and full-time equivalents, with figures on vacancies, pay, leavers and joiners.
How do I find school performance tables?
The Department for Education's "Compare school and college performance" service shows official performance measures for every school and college in England, such as Progress 8, Attainment 8, key stage 2 results, absence and finances.
Full answer, with the latest figure and past values →
Related: Where can I find official GCSE results statistics? · How do I use Explore Education Statistics?
How do I use Explore Education Statistics?
Explore Education Statistics is the Department for Education's service for all its official statistics. Each release has a summary, charts and downloadable data, and the table tool lets you choose geography, time period and filters to build your own table.
How many pupils are in schools in England?
The Department for Education's "Schools, pupils and their characteristics" statistics, published each June from the January school census, give the number of pupils, class sizes, free school meals eligibility, ethnicity and special educational needs for every school type.
Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland run their own school censuses.
Related: How many teachers are there in England? · How many children get free school meals?
Source guides for this topic
- Higher education and student finance statistics (HESA, Student Loans Company, Office for Students and DfE)
- Scottish official statistics: Scottish Government, National Records of Scotland, Public Health Scotland and others
- Social care, childcare and children's social care statistics (DHSC, NHS England, Skills for Care, DfE, ONS and devolved bodies)
- Welsh official statistics: Welsh Government, StatsWales, Welsh Revenue Authority and Senedd Research
- Explore education statistics (Department for Education)
These answers say where official figures are published and how they are defined. They give no verdict on any claim. To report an error, send a correction request.