Pre-school standards in Milton Keynes

New figures from the 
Department For Education show that 62 per cent of city children who are eligible for free school meals will reach the minimum expected standard by age five.

Only six other local education authorities have a better figure.

The early years foundation stage profiles (EYFSP) see teachers assess children under the age of five across 
17 areas, including listening and attention, self-confidence and self-awareness, reading, writing, and being imaginative.

The figures cover the last school year.

Nationally children are far more likely to fall short of meeting all of these standards if they come from a deprived background - 52 per cent compared to 70 per cent of all other pupils.

But in Milton Keynes both children eligible for free school meals and their 
classmates outperform the UK average - with 62 and 71 per cent reaching the minimum expectations.

The figures also register other areas of the children’s backgrounds, including their ethnicity and whether they have special educational needs (SEN).

Chinese children from 
Milton Keynes are far more likely - 81 per cent -to meet all the expected standards than any other ethnicity. This trend is not replicated nationally.

And while children whose first language is not English are at a slight disadvantage, they are still better served by being brought up in MK.

Some 67 per cent of MK children with a different first language will achieve the minimum 
targets set by the government, 
compared to 61 per cent 
nationally.

Youngsters receiving 
SEN support are slightly more likely to reach the government’s expected standards in Milton Keynes than they are across the country - 26 per cent compared to 25 per cent. This covers 303 students.