GCSE results (Attainment 8)
Published
Contents
- 1. Navigate toMain facts and figures section
- 2. Navigate toThings you need to know section
- 3. Navigate to By ethnicity section
- 4. Navigate to By ethnicity and gender section
- 5. Navigate to By ethnicity and eligibility for free school meals section
- 6. Navigate to By ethnicity and special education needs section
- 7. Navigate to By ethnicity and local authority section
- 8. Navigate toData sources section
- 9. Navigate toDownload the data section
1. Main facts and figures
- the average ‘Attainment 8’ score for pupils in England was 50.9 out of 90.0 in the 2020 to 2021 academic year – Attainment 8 measures pupils’ results in 8 GCSE-level qualifications
- pupils from the Chinese ethnic group had the highest score out of all ethnic groups (69.2)
- white Gypsy and Roma pupils had the lowest score (22.7)
- in every ethnic group, girls had a higher average score than boys
- in every ethnic group, pupils eligible for free school meals had a lower average score than non-eligible pupils
2. Things you need to know
What the data measures
The data measures the results of pupils at state-funded mainstream schools in England in 8 GCSE-level qualifications, known as ‘Attainment 8’.
Attainment 8 is a way of measuring how well pupils do in key stage 4, which they usually finish when they are 16 years old.
The 8 subjects which make up Attainment 8 include English and maths. Out of the remaining 6 subjects:
- 3 must come from qualifications that count towards the English Baccalaureate (EBacc), like sciences, language and history
- 3 qualifications can be either GCSE qualifications (including EBacc subjects) or technical awards from a list approved by the Department for Education
Each grade a pupil gets is assigned a point score from 9 (the highest) to 1 (the lowest). Each pupil’s Attainment 8 score is calculated by adding up the points for their 8 subjects, with English and maths counted twice. A school's Attainment 8 score is the average of all the scores of its eligible pupils.
Attainment 8 scores are rounded to 1 decimal place.
Not included in the data
Figures for local authorities with only one school are not shown in the data.
The ethnic groups used in the data
Data is shown for the 16 ethnic groups used in the 2001 Census, with 2 exceptions:
- there are extra categories for traveller of Irish heritage and white Gypsy and Roma pupils
- pupils in the Chinese ethnic group are in a separate category
Ethnicity was not known for 1.8% of pupils.
Local authority data does not include figures for pupils in the ‘other’ ethnic group. These pupils are included in the ‘all’ category, which also includes pupils whose ethnicity was not known.
Methodology
Read the detailed methodology document for the data on this page.
Summer exams were cancelled in 2020 and 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021 students were awarded assessment grades based on what their teacher believed they would have achieved had exams gone ahead. This is different from the 2020 awards so cannot be compared with any previous data.
In the data file
See Download the data for data by:
- type of school
- type of selection
- religion of school
Some figures do not add up to the total for all pupils when separated by certain factors, for example, religion of school or special educational needs (SEN).
For SEN, this is because pupils with unknown SEN provision have been included in the SEN total but do not have their own breakdown. For the school admission and religious character factors, further education colleges with courses for 14 to 16 year olds are included in the total for all state-funded schools, but not in the breakdowns.
3. By ethnicity
| Ethnicity | Score | Pupils |
|---|---|---|
| All | 50.9 | 575,863 |
| Asian | 55.8 | 63,704 |
| Bangladeshi | 55.6 | 10,247 |
| Indian | 62.0 | 16,901 |
| Pakistani | 50.5 | 25,751 |
| Asian other | 58.6 | 10,805 |
| Black | 50.0 | 34,911 |
| Black African | 52.2 | 23,240 |
| Black Caribbean | 44.0 | 7,142 |
| Black other | 48.3 | 4,529 |
| Chinese | 69.2 | 2,101 |
| Mixed | 51.3 | 31,772 |
| Mixed White/Asian | 56.2 | 7,531 |
| Mixed White/Black African | 50.6 | 4,093 |
| Mixed White/Black Caribbean | 45.0 | 8,396 |
| Mixed other | 53.0 | 11,752 |
| White | 50.2 | 421,995 |
| White British | 50.2 | 386,569 |
| White Irish | 55.7 | 1,721 |
| Gypsy/Roma | 22.7 | 1,425 |
| Irish Traveller | 30.7 | 171 |
| White other | 52.1 | 32,109 |
| Other | 51.7 | 11,265 |
| Unknown | 45.1 | 10,115 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity’ (CSV)
Summary of GCSE results (Attainment 8) By ethnicity Summary
Figures for the traveller of Irish heritage and white Gypsy and Roma ethnic groups are based on a small number of pupils and are less reliable as a result.
The data shows that, in the 2020 to 2021 academic year:
- the average Attainment 8 score for pupils in England was 50.9 out of 90.0
- pupils from the Chinese ethnic group had the highest average Attainment 8 score out of all ethnic groups (69.2)
- white Gypsy and Roma (22.7) and traveller of Irish heritage (30.7) pupils had the lowest score, followed by black Caribbean pupils (44.0)
4. By ethnicity and gender
| Boys | Girls | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Boys Score | Boys Pupils | Girls Score | Girls Pupils |
| All | 48.1 | 293,649 | 53.9 | 282,214 |
| Asian | 53.0 | 32,822 | 58.7 | 30,882 |
| Bangladeshi | 53.0 | 5,148 | 58.3 | 5,099 |
| Indian | 59.2 | 8,711 | 65.0 | 8,190 |
| Pakistani | 47.9 | 13,246 | 53.4 | 12,505 |
| Asian other | 55.6 | 5,717 | 62.0 | 5,088 |
| Black | 46.3 | 17,473 | 53.8 | 17,438 |
| Black African | 48.5 | 11,552 | 55.9 | 11,688 |
| Black Caribbean | 40.2 | 3,604 | 47.8 | 3,538 |
| Black other | 44.8 | 2,317 | 52.0 | 2,212 |
| Chinese | 67.4 | 1,025 | 70.8 | 1,076 |
| Mixed | 48.4 | 15,997 | 54.3 | 15,775 |
| Mixed White/Asian | 53.4 | 3,910 | 59.2 | 3,621 |
| Mixed White/Black African | 47.6 | 2,083 | 53.7 | 2,010 |
| Mixed White/Black Caribbean | 41.7 | 4,135 | 48.1 | 4,261 |
| Mixed other | 50.1 | 5,869 | 55.9 | 5,883 |
| White | 47.4 | 215,374 | 53.2 | 206,621 |
| White British | 47.4 | 197,283 | 53.1 | 189,286 |
| White Irish | 52.9 | 873 | 58.5 | 848 |
| Gypsy/Roma | 21.0 | 720 | 24.5 | 705 |
| Irish Traveller | 29.2 | 99 | 32.8 | 72 |
| White other | 49.3 | 16,399 | 55.0 | 15,710 |
| Other | 48.8 | 5,818 | 54.8 | 5,447 |
| Unknown | 43.3 | 5,140 | 47.0 | 4,975 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity and gender’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity and gender’ (CSV)
Summary of GCSE results (Attainment 8) By ethnicity and gender Summary
Figures for the traveller of Irish heritage and white Gypsy and Roma ethnic groups are based on a small number of pupils and are less reliable as a result.
The data shows that:
- the average Attainment 8 score was 53.9 for girls, and 48.1 for boys
- in every ethnic group, girls had a higher average score than boys
- girls from the Chinese ethnic group had the highest average score out of all groups (70.8)
- boys from the white Gypsy and Roma ethnic group had the lowest score (21.0)
- the Chinese ethnic group had the smallest gap between girls (70.8) and boys (67.4)
- the black Caribbean ethnic group had the biggest gap between girls (47.8) and boys (40.2)
5. By ethnicity and eligibility for free school meals
| Free school meals | No free school meals | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Free school meals Score | Free school meals Pupils | No free school meals Score | No free school meals Pupils |
| All | 39.1 | 107,838 | 53.6 | 468,025 |
| Asian | 48.0 | 12,664 | 57.7 | 51,040 |
| Bangladeshi | 51.5 | 3,141 | 57.5 | 7,106 |
| Indian | 51.6 | 1,405 | 63.0 | 15,496 |
| Pakistani | 45.3 | 6,287 | 52.2 | 19,464 |
| Asian other | 48.6 | 1,831 | 60.7 | 8,974 |
| Black | 44.7 | 10,197 | 52.2 | 24,714 |
| Black African | 47.5 | 6,478 | 54.1 | 16,762 |
| Black Caribbean | 38.3 | 2,375 | 46.8 | 4,767 |
| Black other | 42.7 | 1,344 | 50.7 | 3,185 |
| Chinese | 66.5 | 157 | 69.4 | 1,944 |
| Mixed | 40.9 | 8,077 | 54.9 | 23,695 |
| Mixed White/Asian | 42.5 | 1,474 | 59.6 | 6,057 |
| Mixed White/Black African | 42.5 | 1,089 | 53.5 | 3,004 |
| Mixed White/Black Caribbean | 37.0 | 2,746 | 48.8 | 5,650 |
| Mixed other | 43.2 | 2,768 | 56.0 | 8,984 |
| White | 36.1 | 71,165 | 53.1 | 350,830 |
| White British | 35.8 | 66,121 | 53.1 | 320,448 |
| White Irish | 37.4 | 261 | 58.9 | 1,460 |
| Gypsy/Roma | 19.6 | 615 | 25.1 | 810 |
| Irish Traveller | 23.8 | 97 | 39.8 | 74 |
| White other | 43.2 | 4,071 | 53.4 | 28,038 |
| Other | 46.0 | 3,555 | 54.3 | 7,710 |
| Unknown | 39.2 | 2,023 | 46.6 | 8,092 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity and eligibility for free school meals’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity and eligibility for free school meals’ (CSV)
Summary of GCSE results (Attainment 8) By ethnicity and eligibility for free school meals Summary
Figures for the traveller of Irish heritage and white Gypsy and Roma ethnic groups are based on a small number of pupils and are less reliable as a result.
Eligibility for free school meals (FSM) in England is used as an indicator of deprivation.
The data shows that, for pupils eligible for free school meals:
- the average Attainment 8 score was 39.1, compared with 53.6 for non-eligible pupils
- in every ethnic group, they had lower average scores than non-eligible pupils
- pupils from the Chinese ethnic group had the highest average score (66.5)
- white Gypsy and Roma pupils had the lowest (19.6)
- the biggest gap was in the white Irish ethnic group – their average score was 37.4, compared with 58.9 for non-eligible pupils
6. By ethnicity and special education needs
| No identified SEN | Any SEN | SEN Support | SEN with a statement or EHC plan | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | No identified SEN Score | No identified SEN Pupils | Any SEN Score | Any SEN Pupils | SEN Support Score | SEN Support Pupils | SEN with a statement or EHC plan Score | SEN with a statement or EHC plan Pupils |
| All | 54.5 | 487,466 | 31.1 | 87,210 | 36.7 | 63,926 | 15.7 | 23,284 |
| Asian | 58.5 | 57,345 | 30.8 | 6,358 | 37.4 | 4,517 | 14.7 | 1,841 |
| Black | 53.4 | 29,975 | 29.7 | 4,936 | 35.9 | 3,496 | 14.5 | 1,440 |
| Chinese | 70.5 | 1,969 | 48.4 | 132 | 55.8 | 92 | 31.5 | 40 |
| Mixed | 54.9 | 26,946 | 31.5 | 4,817 | 37.2 | 3,505 | 16.0 | 1,312 |
| White | 53.9 | 353,596 | 31.2 | 68,362 | 36.7 | 50,361 | 15.8 | 18,001 |
| Other | 54.1 | 10,050 | 32.0 | 1,214 | 37.1 | 905 | 17.2 | 309 |
| Unknown | 51.9 | 7,585 | 30.8 | 1,391 | 35.2 | 1,050 | 17.2 | 341 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity and special education needs’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity and special education needs’ (CSV)
Summary of GCSE results (Attainment 8) By ethnicity and special education needs Summary
The data shows that, for pupils with special education needs:
- the average Attainment 8 score was 31.1 compared with 54.5 for pupils without special education needs
- pupils from the Chinese ethnic group had the highest average Attainment 8 score (48.4) out of all ethnic groups
- Black pupils had the lowest score (29.7)
7. By ethnicity and local authority
| All | Asian | Black | Chinese | Mixed | White | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geography | All Score | All Pupils | Asian Score | Asian Pupils | Black Score | Black Pupils | Chinese Score | Chinese Pupils | Mixed Score | Mixed Pupils | White Score | White Pupils |
| All - England | 50.9 | 575,863 | 55.8 | 63,704 | 50.0 | 34,911 | 69.2 | 2,101 | 51.3 | 31,772 | 50.2 | 421,995 |
| Barking and Dagenham | 50.5 | 2,805 | 57.7 | 639 | 53.0 | 775 | 67.6 | 14 | 48.1 | 303 | 44.4 | 963 |
| Barnet | 60.8 | 4,100 | 71.4 | 603 | 53.4 | 506 | 72.2 | 40 | 58.7 | 450 | 61.0 | 1,944 |
| Barnsley | 46.3 | 2,345 | 56.2 | 11 | 50.9 | 18 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 2 | 49.2 | 52 | 47.6 | 2,159 |
| Bath and North East Somerset | 55.0 | 2,198 | 66.8 | 39 | 49.7 | 21 | 74.3 | 7 | 58.0 | 124 | 54.8 | 1,936 |
| Bedford | 48.6 | 1,989 | 50.2 | 299 | 47.5 | 152 | 73.9 | 5 | 46.0 | 193 | 48.6 | 1,302 |
| Bexley | 54.0 | 3,262 | 66.3 | 278 | 58.4 | 640 | 69.7 | 39 | 56.9 | 197 | 50.4 | 2,007 |
| Birmingham | 50.1 | 14,036 | 52.3 | 5,611 | 47.6 | 1,894 | 69.1 | 43 | 49.1 | 1,023 | 49.2 | 4,359 |
| Blackburn with Darwen | 50.7 | 2,052 | 55.9 | 891 | 55.1 | 30 | 69.5 | 5 | 52.7 | 61 | 46.0 | 1,002 |
| Blackpool | 41.7 | 1,296 | 60.7 | 30 | 59.8 | 6 | 51.2 | 3 | 35.3 | 29 | 41.3 | 1,221 |
| Bolton | 48.9 | 3,648 | 54.5 | 863 | 42.9 | 199 | 57.7 | 3 | 52.0 | 133 | 47.1 | 2,355 |
| Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole | 54.2 | 3,665 | 64.3 | 100 | 54.8 | 25 | 73.3 | 13 | 56.0 | 192 | 53.8 | 3,242 |
| Bracknell Forest | 52.8 | 1,227 | 61.8 | 62 | 52.0 | 37 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 2 | 54.8 | 71 | 52.2 | 1,047 |
| Bradford | 45.9 | 6,658 | 48.0 | 2,978 | 47.0 | 119 | 64.9 | 10 | 43.4 | 352 | 44.5 | 2,970 |
| Brent | 53.7 | 3,160 | 56.2 | 959 | 48.9 | 665 | 70.9 | 7 | 52.8 | 208 | 53.1 | 634 |
| Brighton and Hove | 52.5 | 2,225 | 56.5 | 81 | 48.7 | 51 | 63.6 | 9 | 51.6 | 193 | 52.4 | 1,804 |
| Bristol, City of | 49.6 | 3,694 | 53.2 | 300 | 45.6 | 429 | 67.1 | 15 | 48.0 | 339 | 50.2 | 2,477 |
| Bromley | 55.2 | 3,356 | 69.1 | 219 | 56.2 | 379 | 71.6 | 38 | 54.8 | 323 | 53.5 | 2,242 |
| Buckinghamshire | 59.0 | 6,070 | 62.0 | 1,300 | 54.1 | 213 | 77.8 | 46 | 59.2 | 368 | 58.1 | 4,029 |
| Bury | 49.4 | 2,229 | 50.8 | 336 | 44.8 | 62 | 67.3 | 6 | 44.7 | 80 | 49.5 | 1,692 |
| Calderdale | 52.2 | 2,757 | 53.9 | 477 | 56.1 | 38 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 2 | 52.1 | 115 | 51.7 | 2,099 |
| Cambridgeshire | 52.7 | 6,039 | 58.6 | 209 | 47.1 | 85 | 63.8 | 33 | 55.8 | 313 | 52.2 | 5,214 |
| Camden | 53.1 | 1,644 | 54.4 | 296 | 49.7 | 370 | 80.3 | 7 | 49.6 | 187 | 55.7 | 577 |
| Central Bedfordshire | 49.2 | 2,790 | 56.4 | 64 | 51.1 | 85 | 59.0 | 11 | 48.1 | 161 | 49.0 | 2,383 |
| Cheshire East | 52.3 | 3,988 | 58.8 | 63 | 44.7 | 20 | 66.2 | 17 | 51.9 | 122 | 52.3 | 3,685 |
| Cheshire West and Chester | 51.6 | 3,743 | 48.5 | 47 | 50.0 | 21 | 58.4 | 9 | 57.7 | 97 | 51.5 | 3,529 |
| Cornwall | 50.1 | 5,399 | 56.0 | 11 | 37.6 | 5 | 66.6 | 8 | 47.9 | 123 | 50.0 | 5,151 |
| County Durham | 50.1 | 5,269 | 62.4 | 41 | 54.6 | 16 | 64.4 | 14 | 54.2 | 74 | 50.6 | 4,982 |
| Coventry | 48.0 | 3,827 | 55.5 | 730 | 47.1 | 504 | 79.4 | 7 | 48.7 | 268 | 45.9 | 2,191 |
| Croydon | 50.0 | 3,831 | 56.2 | 522 | 47.4 | 1,230 | 69.0 | 11 | 48.8 | 514 | 50.9 | 1,359 |
| Cumbria | 49.4 | 5,070 | 67.0 | 34 | 50.8 | 10 | 60.0 | 19 | 54.8 | 76 | 49.3 | 4,780 |
| Darlington | 50.7 | 1,141 | 59.0 | 33 | 33.7 | 4 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 1 | 49.8 | 29 | 50.5 | 1,051 |
| Derby | 46.4 | 3,008 | 50.7 | 591 | 45.0 | 131 | 77.6 | 9 | 43.7 | 210 | 45.3 | 1,996 |
| Derbyshire | 49.9 | 7,625 | 59.5 | 76 | 58.1 | 29 | 67.5 | 14 | 52.4 | 204 | 49.7 | 7,256 |
| Devon | 51.1 | 7,064 | 56.5 | 48 | 46.9 | 12 | 60.0 | 12 | 55.5 | 172 | 50.9 | 6,532 |
| Doncaster | 47.0 | 3,149 | 51.5 | 93 | 46.3 | 33 | 61.3 | 14 | 47.4 | 96 | 47.0 | 2,841 |
| Dorset | 50.2 | 3,636 | 61.1 | 36 | 51.7 | 7 | 64.3 | 6 | 48.9 | 114 | 50.1 | 3,414 |
| Dudley | 47.6 | 3,514 | 52.6 | 328 | 44.3 | 114 | 56.9 | 8 | 47.0 | 220 | 47.3 | 2,668 |
| Ealing | 53.6 | 3,276 | 53.3 | 998 | 48.6 | 594 | 82.4 | 9 | 55.8 | 257 | 56.6 | 862 |
| East Midlands | 49.6 | 49,843 | 54.5 | 4,508 | 48.5 | 1,763 | 67.7 | 131 | 48.8 | 2,447 | 49.2 | 40,049 |
| East Riding of Yorkshire | 51.4 | 3,259 | 62.4 | 13 | 52.4 | 6 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 2 | 50.6 | 63 | 51.5 | 3,117 |
| East Sussex | 49.3 | 4,834 | 57.3 | 85 | 46.0 | 37 | 53.7 | 18 | 49.7 | 245 | 49.3 | 4,350 |
| East of England | 51.0 | 64,647 | 56.9 | 4,482 | 51.7 | 2,557 | 69.7 | 255 | 51.7 | 3,634 | 50.4 | 51,852 |
| Enfield | 51.1 | 3,783 | 62.1 | 308 | 48.0 | 988 | 72.4 | 13 | 53.9 | 372 | 49.7 | 1,732 |
| Essex | 50.4 | 15,139 | 67.5 | 425 | 53.4 | 596 | 72.9 | 68 | 51.1 | 723 | 49.5 | 12,888 |
| Gateshead | 51.3 | 1,971 | 59.4 | 59 | 60.4 | 37 | 71.2 | 7 | 54.5 | 38 | 50.9 | 1,800 |
| Gloucestershire | 54.3 | 6,388 | 64.3 | 259 | 48.8 | 100 | 76.3 | 23 | 52.9 | 317 | 54.0 | 5,569 |
| Greenwich | 51.2 | 2,695 | 56.3 | 200 | 52.2 | 912 | 65.1 | 28 | 51.7 | 275 | 48.6 | 1,163 |
| Hackney | 54.0 | 2,331 | 56.2 | 282 | 48.8 | 813 | 75.3 | 14 | 52.5 | 232 | 58.9 | 797 |
| Halton | 47.2 | 1,488 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 2 | 41.3 | 3 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 1 | 46.1 | 45 | 47.0 | 1,406 |
| Hammersmith and Fulham | 58.1 | 1,458 | 59.5 | 124 | 52.5 | 324 | 45.0 | 3 | 57.0 | 233 | 62.2 | 587 |
| Hampshire | 51.8 | 13,553 | 59.8 | 375 | 50.8 | 149 | 64.7 | 35 | 53.2 | 498 | 51.5 | 12,310 |
| Haringey | 51.4 | 2,514 | 55.4 | 146 | 45.9 | 655 | 62.3 | 20 | 53.3 | 290 | 53.3 | 1,125 |
| Harrow | 54.8 | 2,521 | 58.7 | 1,109 | 47.7 | 363 | 74.2 | 13 | 55.0 | 215 | 53.0 | 599 |
| Hartlepool | 47.4 | 1,070 | 53.1 | 26 | 42.1 | 7 | 71.4 | 6 | 45.0 | 11 | 47.3 | 1,013 |
| Havering | 52.2 | 2,882 | 57.7 | 171 | 52.9 | 345 | 76.6 | 15 | 50.0 | 202 | 51.9 | 2,068 |
| Herefordshire, County of | 50.6 | 1,762 | 49.0 | 10 | 40.7 | 3 | N/A* | 0 | 51.8 | 50 | 50.5 | 1,685 |
| Hertfordshire | 54.8 | 13,487 | 64.2 | 1,154 | 51.1 | 654 | 74.5 | 58 | 53.9 | 932 | 54.0 | 10,420 |
| Hillingdon | 52.8 | 3,420 | 57.6 | 847 | 51.8 | 383 | 70.6 | 5 | 54.7 | 352 | 48.9 | 1,444 |
| Hounslow | 53.9 | 2,916 | 57.5 | 968 | 53.6 | 352 | 71.1 | 8 | 51.7 | 277 | 51.9 | 899 |
| Inner London | 53.4 | 28,891 | 56.9 | 6,048 | 49.9 | 8,413 | 67.5 | 152 | 52.2 | 3,094 | 55.1 | 8,118 |
| Isle of Wight | 47.0 | 1,258 | 43.7 | 9 | 30.0 | 3 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 1 | 49.4 | 31 | 47.1 | 1,202 |
| Isles of Scilly | withheld to protect confidentiality | 14 | N/A* | 0 | N/A* | 0 | N/A* | 0 | N/A* | 0 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 14 |
| Islington | 52.2 | 1,493 | 60.0 | 175 | 49.5 | 428 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 2 | 52.5 | 189 | 50.8 | 545 |
| Kensington and Chelsea | 57.9 | 896 | 65.4 | 31 | 55.6 | 183 | 72.4 | 7 | 58.3 | 143 | 58.2 | 342 |
| Kent | 51.4 | 16,779 | 63.6 | 737 | 59.2 | 574 | 76.1 | 56 | 56.8 | 899 | 50.1 | 14,029 |
| Kingston upon Hull, City of | 47.5 | 2,787 | 59.9 | 40 | 45.9 | 54 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 2 | 56.1 | 113 | 47.7 | 2,378 |
| Kingston upon Thames | 61.4 | 1,828 | 69.8 | 426 | 51.9 | 75 | 73.3 | 20 | 59.6 | 176 | 58.6 | 999 |
| Kirklees | 49.5 | 4,858 | 50.7 | 1,365 | 47.4 | 102 | 64.1 | 7 | 44.8 | 299 | 49.7 | 2,973 |
| Knowsley | 37.8 | 1,151 | 48.2 | 9 | 38.9 | 11 | N/A* | 0 | 40.2 | 15 | 37.6 | 1,095 |
| Lambeth | 51.3 | 2,264 | 57.5 | 106 | 49.7 | 1,025 | 57.5 | 11 | 48.7 | 268 | 53.9 | 642 |
| Lancashire | 50.4 | 13,085 | 52.9 | 1,534 | 48.8 | 58 | 64.4 | 37 | 52.1 | 408 | 50.1 | 10,727 |
| Leeds | 49.2 | 8,584 | 51.6 | 1,003 | 47.4 | 689 | 66.7 | 48 | 49.8 | 513 | 49.6 | 5,928 |
| Leicester | 47.2 | 4,070 | 52.1 | 1,982 | 45.8 | 469 | 74.2 | 5 | 45.2 | 272 | 40.3 | 1,225 |
| Leicestershire | 50.3 | 7,412 | 60.3 | 604 | 50.0 | 96 | 63.5 | 30 | 47.9 | 350 | 49.5 | 6,232 |
| Lewisham | 49.1 | 2,340 | 57.3 | 126 | 46.6 | 999 | 69.9 | 17 | 48.5 | 315 | 50.5 | 679 |
| Lincolnshire | 50.5 | 7,860 | 69.6 | 159 | 54.9 | 47 | 69.8 | 18 | 56.0 | 237 | 49.9 | 7,289 |
| Liverpool | 47.4 | 5,028 | 62.1 | 199 | 47.7 | 218 | 67.6 | 50 | 48.6 | 277 | 46.4 | 3,967 |
| London | 54.1 | 85,646 | 59.2 | 18,292 | 50.5 | 18,410 | 70.8 | 505 | 53.1 | 8,449 | 53.5 | 32,293 |
| Luton | 47.1 | 2,832 | 49.3 | 1,362 | 47.0 | 340 | 72.4 | 5 | 45.3 | 202 | 43.9 | 830 |
| Manchester | 47.7 | 5,743 | 51.6 | 1,385 | 50.3 | 1,125 | 66.4 | 50 | 44.5 | 476 | 44.7 | 2,257 |
| Medway | 49.4 | 3,169 | 61.5 | 170 | 60.2 | 265 | 64.0 | 14 | 52.6 | 204 | 47.2 | 2,439 |
| Merton | 53.2 | 1,555 | 57.5 | 281 | 49.3 | 302 | 72.8 | 4 | 47.1 | 161 | 54.5 | 728 |
| Middlesbrough | 46.7 | 1,547 | 52.7 | 187 | 53.6 | 20 | 74.7 | 3 | 44.5 | 74 | 45.8 | 1,209 |
| Milton Keynes | 48.7 | 3,128 | 56.1 | 295 | 50.1 | 471 | 70.9 | 11 | 47.7 | 259 | 47.7 | 1,954 |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | 47.4 | 2,607 | 55.0 | 300 | 46.8 | 132 | 66.0 | 17 | 52.4 | 102 | 45.8 | 1,964 |
| Newham | 54.5 | 4,311 | 58.2 | 2,051 | 51.6 | 999 | 70.2 | 9 | 50.0 | 263 | 49.2 | 689 |
| Norfolk | 49.6 | 8,197 | 60.1 | 99 | 50.8 | 80 | 65.6 | 33 | 53.7 | 297 | 49.3 | 7,427 |
| North East | 49.2 | 27,055 | 54.7 | 1,028 | 51.4 | 299 | 70.4 | 72 | 50.8 | 611 | 49.2 | 24,440 |
| North East Lincolnshire | 45.8 | 1,827 | 58.6 | 14 | 73.5 | 3 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 2 | 44.4 | 28 | 48.1 | 1,599 |
| North Lincolnshire | 47.6 | 1,899 | 49.1 | 67 | 38.5 | 12 | 63.6 | 7 | 49.9 | 42 | 47.5 | 1,757 |
| North Northamptonshire | 48.1 | 3,753 | 60.5 | 125 | 50.2 | 169 | 53.0 | 7 | 49.1 | 170 | 47.5 | 3,223 |
| North Somerset | 52.3 | 2,239 | 58.3 | 27 | 49.3 | 33 | 58.0 | 5 | 49.3 | 66 | 52.4 | 2,086 |
| North Tyneside | 50.3 | 2,098 | 52.0 | 41 | 51.7 | 12 | 80.3 | 7 | 49.8 | 51 | 50.2 | 1,948 |
| North West | 49.6 | 79,949 | 53.7 | 8,447 | 49.3 | 2,549 | 68.2 | 347 | 50.6 | 3,085 | 49.0 | 63,044 |
| North Yorkshire | 52.5 | 6,261 | 62.5 | 133 | 48.9 | 19 | 70.3 | 16 | 55.3 | 160 | 52.2 | 5,837 |
| Northumberland | 49.8 | 3,164 | 57.0 | 47 | 33.5 | 4 | 70.7 | 3 | 49.2 | 59 | 49.7 | 3,028 |
| Nottingham | 45.8 | 2,932 | 51.2 | 534 | 45.6 | 344 | 66.7 | 13 | 42.9 | 331 | 44.7 | 1,559 |
| Nottinghamshire | 51.1 | 8,236 | 60.3 | 217 | 51.4 | 144 | 72.3 | 25 | 52.7 | 381 | 50.7 | 7,289 |
| Oldham | 46.2 | 3,231 | 47.7 | 1,030 | 47.3 | 136 | 70.4 | 5 | 45.5 | 140 | 45.5 | 1,809 |
| Outer London | 54.5 | 56,755 | 60.4 | 12,244 | 51.0 | 9,997 | 72.2 | 353 | 53.6 | 5,355 | 52.9 | 24,175 |
| Oxfordshire | 51.0 | 6,566 | 52.1 | 377 | 48.3 | 164 | 73.3 | 12 | 50.4 | 435 | 51.3 | 5,336 |
| Peterborough | 46.3 | 2,564 | 46.6 | 442 | 44.2 | 94 | 53.5 | 5 | 45.3 | 175 | 46.8 | 1,746 |
| Plymouth | 50.5 | 2,717 | 60.7 | 27 | 45.3 | 26 | 72.1 | 10 | 52.2 | 72 | 50.3 | 2,487 |
| Portsmouth | 46.3 | 1,888 | 57.4 | 109 | 46.4 | 62 | 68.5 | 7 | 43.6 | 77 | 45.2 | 1,562 |
| Reading | 55.4 | 1,397 | 66.0 | 389 | 49.0 | 116 | 82.0 | 19 | 47.0 | 142 | 51.5 | 691 |
| Redbridge | 56.8 | 3,874 | 60.9 | 2,055 | 49.5 | 504 | 74.5 | 17 | 53.1 | 299 | 52.8 | 855 |
| Redcar and Cleveland | 48.8 | 1,567 | 50.8 | 16 | 53.5 | 5 | N/A* | 0 | 50.0 | 37 | 49.0 | 1,457 |
| Richmond upon Thames | 58.1 | 1,736 | 58.2 | 121 | 49.2 | 78 | 56.4 | 6 | 56.8 | 193 | 59.0 | 1,255 |
| Rochdale | 46.2 | 2,657 | 48.5 | 703 | 46.0 | 136 | 79.5 | 3 | 47.5 | 115 | 45.3 | 1,634 |
| Rotherham | 48.7 | 3,239 | 50.4 | 297 | 49.3 | 41 | 70.7 | 8 | 48.7 | 95 | 48.4 | 2,755 |
| Rutland | 55.3 | 504 | 56.8 | 3 | 64.9 | 5 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 1 | 57.2 | 14 | 55.0 | 474 |
| Salford | 45.1 | 2,383 | 52.8 | 48 | 49.5 | 141 | 74.6 | 5 | 46.1 | 147 | 44.2 | 1,942 |
| Sandwell | 46.9 | 4,028 | 50.6 | 1,206 | 43.7 | 401 | 61.0 | 3 | 47.3 | 333 | 45.0 | 1,922 |
| Sefton | 49.4 | 2,906 | 61.2 | 43 | 46.0 | 17 | 81.3 | 5 | 54.8 | 72 | 50.2 | 2,620 |
| Sheffield | 48.1 | 5,640 | 49.2 | 642 | 46.8 | 323 | 71.5 | 25 | 45.5 | 418 | 48.4 | 3,976 |
| Shropshire | 49.9 | 3,013 | 59.3 | 28 | 53.5 | 11 | 55.6 | 7 | 52.6 | 86 | 49.8 | 2,819 |
| Slough | 56.1 | 2,113 | 61.0 | 1,009 | 52.0 | 201 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 2 | 56.5 | 215 | 48.3 | 528 |
| Solihull | 51.0 | 3,157 | 54.8 | 416 | 48.4 | 93 | 68.5 | 11 | 49.4 | 226 | 50.4 | 2,329 |
| Somerset | 49.4 | 5,095 | 56.6 | 46 | 50.5 | 24 | 66.8 | 6 | 53.4 | 130 | 49.2 | 4,824 |
| South East | 52.1 | 90,615 | 59.6 | 6,851 | 53.0 | 2,951 | 69.6 | 329 | 53.3 | 5,136 | 51.3 | 73,095 |
| South Gloucestershire | 50.9 | 2,640 | 58.4 | 68 | 52.1 | 60 | 55.0 | 3 | 50.2 | 128 | 51.0 | 2,309 |
| South Tyneside | 46.0 | 1,618 | 51.5 | 64 | 53.1 | 9 | N/A* | 0 | 52.7 | 37 | 47.8 | 1,403 |
| South West | 51.4 | 53,700 | 57.7 | 1,321 | 47.3 | 860 | 68.2 | 133 | 52.0 | 2,129 | 51.3 | 47,805 |
| Southampton | 46.2 | 2,174 | 53.1 | 264 | 54.6 | 61 | 64.0 | 7 | 48.3 | 145 | 44.6 | 1,665 |
| Southend-on-Sea | 57.6 | 2,188 | 70.8 | 221 | 67.3 | 201 | 78.2 | 15 | 59.4 | 134 | 54.1 | 1,568 |
| Southwark | 55.0 | 3,002 | 62.4 | 157 | 52.9 | 1,386 | 62.9 | 28 | 53.7 | 367 | 57.7 | 771 |
| St. Helens | 48.2 | 1,892 | 62.9 | 27 | 51.2 | 9 | 63.1 | 4 | 54.4 | 44 | 47.9 | 1,794 |
| Staffordshire | 49.3 | 8,897 | 48.3 | 338 | 49.9 | 65 | 71.5 | 19 | 48.3 | 293 | 49.4 | 8,082 |
| Stockport | 52.7 | 2,869 | 57.5 | 191 | 46.8 | 43 | 64.1 | 15 | 53.8 | 127 | 52.4 | 2,431 |
| Stockton-on-Tees | 50.4 | 2,186 | 51.2 | 108 | 60.4 | 37 | 74.3 | 8 | 50.4 | 63 | 50.1 | 1,943 |
| Stoke-on-Trent | 45.1 | 2,672 | 48.2 | 412 | 47.3 | 114 | 71.7 | 12 | 41.8 | 155 | 44.4 | 1,937 |
| Suffolk | 48.8 | 7,474 | 56.9 | 117 | 45.9 | 73 | 55.6 | 9 | 50.1 | 363 | 48.7 | 6,664 |
| Sunderland | 49.2 | 2,817 | 57.1 | 106 | 52.9 | 16 | 72.0 | 6 | 54.6 | 36 | 48.7 | 2,642 |
| Surrey | 54.3 | 10,875 | 57.5 | 704 | 50.2 | 259 | 68.9 | 43 | 55.1 | 633 | 54.1 | 8,999 |
| Sutton | 62.0 | 3,048 | 74.7 | 784 | 59.5 | 334 | 80.7 | 47 | 59.5 | 305 | 55.9 | 1,486 |
| Swindon | 49.3 | 2,313 | 50.8 | 262 | 49.1 | 67 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 2 | 48.7 | 124 | 49.3 | 1,789 |
| Tameside | 48.5 | 2,635 | 52.5 | 305 | 50.1 | 80 | 70.6 | 11 | 51.0 | 136 | 47.6 | 2,055 |
| Telford and Wrekin | 50.2 | 2,174 | 56.1 | 171 | 49.7 | 87 | 80.2 | 9 | 48.5 | 109 | 49.5 | 1,772 |
| Thurrock | 49.4 | 1,948 | 59.4 | 90 | 52.1 | 197 | 69.1 | 13 | 52.1 | 141 | 48.1 | 1,410 |
| Torbay | 51.3 | 1,638 | 62.6 | 16 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 1 | 72.6 | 8 | 54.2 | 56 | 52.7 | 1,412 |
| Tower Hamlets | 51.7 | 2,967 | 55.0 | 1,974 | 49.1 | 300 | 75.3 | 8 | 47.9 | 162 | 47.5 | 319 |
| Trafford | 60.2 | 3,168 | 68.3 | 520 | 61.0 | 126 | 73.5 | 53 | 60.9 | 235 | 57.6 | 2,137 |
| Wakefield | 50.1 | 3,710 | 51.2 | 142 | 47.5 | 53 | 58.8 | 13 | 49.6 | 112 | 50.1 | 3,324 |
| Walsall | 47.5 | 3,491 | 54.6 | 858 | 47.7 | 201 | 74.4 | 15 | 45.8 | 215 | 44.5 | 2,140 |
| Waltham Forest | 51.5 | 2,707 | 57.0 | 756 | 47.2 | 572 | 66.2 | 19 | 49.7 | 276 | 49.7 | 936 |
| Wandsworth | 52.2 | 1,919 | 54.8 | 383 | 45.4 | 525 | 63.6 | 12 | 51.5 | 251 | 56.8 | 612 |
| Warrington | 51.8 | 2,454 | 51.6 | 40 | 46.4 | 18 | 71.1 | 14 | 58.5 | 81 | 51.7 | 2,198 |
| Warwickshire | 52.9 | 6,225 | 64.0 | 369 | 48.3 | 81 | 69.4 | 15 | 51.2 | 297 | 52.4 | 5,363 |
| West Berkshire | 52.4 | 1,776 | 57.5 | 55 | 52.0 | 21 | 53.0 | 3 | 51.8 | 107 | 52.3 | 1,565 |
| West Midlands | 49.5 | 65,625 | 53.1 | 11,469 | 47.2 | 4,003 | 69.1 | 163 | 48.4 | 3,772 | 48.9 | 44,012 |
| West Northamptonshire | 51.1 | 4,443 | 56.7 | 217 | 52.3 | 329 | 65.6 | 9 | 49.4 | 278 | 50.9 | 3,506 |
| West Sussex | 51.6 | 8,184 | 55.5 | 386 | 45.4 | 154 | 62.3 | 33 | 51.5 | 361 | 51.5 | 7,116 |
| Westminster | 57.6 | 1,752 | 60.6 | 197 | 55.1 | 406 | 72.9 | 14 | 57.5 | 194 | 62.1 | 433 |
| Wigan | 49.7 | 3,646 | 62.9 | 35 | 45.2 | 61 | 77.4 | 9 | 49.6 | 77 | 49.6 | 3,392 |
| Wiltshire | 51.4 | 5,000 | 59.5 | 82 | 45.0 | 50 | 64.1 | 15 | 54.4 | 172 | 51.1 | 4,563 |
| Windsor and Maidenhead | 53.8 | 1,585 | 52.5 | 210 | 52.8 | 43 | withheld to protect confidentiality | 2 | 56.4 | 126 | 53.9 | 1,160 |
| Wirral | 51.9 | 3,587 | 67.0 | 112 | 68.1 | 19 | 72.7 | 23 | 54.4 | 92 | 51.1 | 3,316 |
| Wokingham | 57.6 | 1,814 | 62.0 | 234 | 58.3 | 70 | 54.7 | 9 | 52.4 | 127 | 57.2 | 1,309 |
| Wolverhampton | 50.0 | 3,100 | 55.9 | 775 | 48.4 | 386 | 62.3 | 5 | 45.7 | 307 | 48.2 | 1,554 |
| Worcestershire | 49.6 | 5,729 | 54.8 | 217 | 46.8 | 49 | 60.3 | 9 | 51.0 | 190 | 49.4 | 5,191 |
| York | 55.3 | 1,810 | 64.8 | 31 | 58.6 | 9 | 63.4 | 8 | 63.8 | 51 | 54.8 | 1,692 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 49.1 | 58,783 | 50.1 | 7,306 | 47.6 | 1,519 | 66.1 | 166 | 48.4 | 2,509 | 49.4 | 45,405 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity and local authority’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity and local authority’ (CSV)
Summary of GCSE results (Attainment 8) By ethnicity and local authority Summary
The summary only includes figures based on high enough pupil numbers to make reliable generalisations.
The data shows that:
- pupils in Sutton had the highest average Attainment 8 score (62.0), followed by Kingston upon Thames (61.4)
- pupils in Knowsley had the lowest average score (37.8), followed by Blackpool (41.7)
- out of all local authorities, the highest average score for white pupils was in Hammersmith and Fulham (62.2) – the lowest score was in Knowsley (37.6)
8. Data sources
Source
Key stage 4 performance: academic year 2020/21
Type of data
Administrative data
Type of statistic
National Statistics
Publisher
Department for Education
Publication frequency
Yearly
Purpose of data source
The data is collected to help measure the performance of pupils and schools at GCSE level (key stage 4).
9. Download the data
GCSE Attainment 8 Local Authority Data 2020-2021
- Spreadsheet
(csv)
362 KB
This file contains the following: measure, ethnicity, ethnicity_type, time, time_type, geography, geography_type, geography_code, gender, age, value, value_type, denominator and numerator
GCSE Attainment 8 National Data 2020-2021
- Spreadsheet
(csv)
221 KB
This file contains the following: measure, ethnicity, ethnicity_type, time, time_type, geography, geography_type, geography_code, gender, age, FSM, SEN_type, SEN_grouping, admission_type, school_characteristic, religious_denomination, value, value_type, denominator and numerator