Pupils in England pull further ahead of those in Scotland and Wales, unions react

Britain / 7 September 2026 Raise the colours founder charged with 14 offences 7 September 2026 Scotland / 7 September 2026 Time to reform ‘rubbish’ Holyrood committees 7 September 2026 Industrial / 7 September 2026 Unite hails hot bus win as drivers no longer have to ‘sweat it out’ 7 September 2026 Justice System / 7 September 2026 Prosecutors challenged on branding Palestine chant a hate crime 7 September 2026 Transport / 7 September 2026 Liverpool buses brought under public control as Burnham hails end of ‘four decades of deregulation’ 7 September 2026 Climate Crisis / 7 September 2026 End battery rip-off and take control to lower bills, says Prospect 7 September 2026 ENGLISH pupils have pulled ahead of the rest of Britain in international reading, maths and science tests, with Scotland and Wales falling further behind, new data found yesterday.

The 2025 Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) saw reading and maths scores slump in each British nation except England while all four saw an uptick in science.

The latest Pisa report, which is published every three years, also warned of a worldwide decline in teenagers’ reading skills warning they were losing the skills that “matter most in the age of AI.”

England’s Schools Minister Georgia Gould, said the government wanted to build on the positive results and “go further so all young people leave school with strong literacy and numeracy.”

National Education Union general secretary Daniel Kebede said Pisa’s tests, which are run by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, confirm that “too many pupils, poorer pupils especially, do not feel they belong at school.”

“Pupils from poorer homes still do far worse than their better-off classmates, and over the past decade poorer pupils have fallen further behind in maths,” he said.

“On AI, pupils are using these tools constantly, yet barely two in five feel able to judge whether what they produce is trustworthy. Schools need funding, guidance and time to teach this properly.”

The test results show Wales has fallen further behind the other devolved nations and England, with the biggest drop in maths scores with reading results also lower.

Cabinet Minister for Education Anna Brychan said: “Pisa highlights longstanding issues that require a considered and joined-up response.”

NEU Cymru’s Nicola Fitzpatrick said: “The results released today represent just one narrow measure and that they should not be seen or used as a definitive benchmark for education quality across Wales.”

NAHT Cymru national secretary Dr Graham Gault said: “School leaders need greater investment in staffing, support services, professional development and resources if they are to deliver the ambitions set out for Welsh education.” 

Former Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon pledged to eliminate the poverty-related attainment gap 11 years ago.

Yesterday Education Secretary Mairi McAllan welcomed evidence the link had weakened since 2022.

Scottish Labour education spokeswoman Katherine Sangster accused her of “astounding complacency.”