Only 20% of the difference in pupils’ achievement is attributable to school quality, the rest depends on life outside the school gates; according to research by Save the Children. And in my town of Reading only 4% of Pupil Premium funding is spent on work beyond the classroom to address this stark reality.

There is a Gap in every country in the developed world. It is called the achievement gap, and it is the difference in educational outcomes for children which are dependent upon whether they were born into a poor or a rich family. As many as 1 in 4 children in the UK are born into poverty according to the DWP (2009). Currently, the UK has one of the largest gaps of any country in the world.