§ Mr. Alan CampbellTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the effect of the National Numeracy Strategy on numeracy skills among primary school children in Tynemouth constituency. [130389]
§ Mr. Stephen TwiggThe National Numeracy Strategy has transformed standards of numeracy in our primary schools. Nationally, 73 per cent. of pupils achieved level 4 or above in the 2003 Key Stage 2 mathematics tests, 14 percentage points more than in 1998.
The improvement in numeracy standards of pupils in North Tyneside LEA has been greater than the national improvement. In 1998, 59 per cent. of pupils achieved level 4 or above in mathematics at Key Stage 2. In 2003 the figure was 76 per cent. We are unable to disaggregate results for Tynemouth schools.