One in five leaving primary school with reading or maths problems

4.00.00pm UTC (GMT +0000) Fri 10th Aug 2007

The government has failed to meet its own target for raising achievement among 11-year-olds in English and maths for the 10th year running. Key stage two results published today show that one in five children left primary school this year with a poor grasp of the Three Rs. Exam results for 11-year-olds reveal that 120,000 cannot read or write properly and almost 140,000 are unable to do sums. A further 72,000 fail to reach an acceptable standard in science exams. Standards in England's primary schools have improved by just one percentage point in the last 12 months despite millions being invested in education reforms for young children.

Liberal Democrat Education spokesperson Stephen Williams said "It is a hollow boast to claim the 'best ever' results when four out of ten children still leave primary school without an adequate grasp of the basics in Maths, English and Science. Despite some marginal improvements, disturbing trends still persist. Far too many children are leaving primary school without the skills needed to deal with secondary education."