Haringey primaries 'the worst and going backwards in core subjects'

A leaked Whitehall document has branded Haringey primary schools the worst in inner London and suggests they are going backwards in English and maths.

Drawing on official data, the document states that one in seven of the borough's schools is below the minimum standard - a rate three times worse than London boroughs that suffer similar social deprivation, including Hackney, Newham and Lewisham.

Haringey is a key battleground in the Government's attempts to reform failing schools, with ministers arguing that up to five primaries should be taken out of council control.

Education Secretary Michael Gove wants to turn them into semi-independent academies, with new leadership. The Labour local authority says academies would get an unfair share of education funds.

One of the Haringey schools, Downhills primary, is taking legal action to block moves to turn it into an academy and is backed by many parents.

Tonight, Labour MP for Tottenham David Lammy, education writer Fiona Millar and NUT head Christine Blower will speak against Mr Gove's plans at a public meeting.

The leaked Powerpoint document, presented by civil servants to ministers, reveals that over the past year, while the national average for primary-school-leavers achieving Level 4+ in English and maths rose from 73 per cent to 74 per cent, Haringey went backwards, from 75 to 71.

Some 15 per cent of Haringey primaries are below the minimum acceptable standard, compared with four per cent in Hackney and Camden, it states.

Almost a quarter of Haringey primaries have dipped below the baseline at some point in the past six years.

Writing in tonight's Standard, schools minister Nick Gibb says that standards in Haringey "are simply not good enough".

A spokesman for Haringey council said its secondaries were improving and it was working to improve primary school results rapidly.

Exam boards should be banned from endorsing textbooks and running training courses for teachers, the new head of the Independent Schools Association said today.

John Wood claimed the "aggressive commercialisation of the exam system has seriously undermined its integrity".

A newspaper investigation recently suggested teachers were being told what questions to expect during seminars held by exam boards.