The North West is prioritising reception improvement with a clear focus on strengthening early communication and literacy.

Analysis over time shows that the communication and language early learning goals (ELGs) have been the most persistent area of weakness across the region, with 75% of local authorities below the national average.

Writing has also remained the weakest literacy outcome for several years, typically sitting 4 to 6 percentage points below reading. Together, these longer-term patterns underline where sustained early language investment can have the greatest impact.

To address this, the regional focus centres on building strong oracy and early language foundations, aligned with national evidence on what works. The Education Endowment Foundation reports that high-quality communication and language approaches can secure around 7 months’ additional progress, while phonological awareness programmes can add a further 6 months, directly supporting early reading and writing development.

By embedding communication-rich pedagogy and focused early literacy support, the region aims to reduce the 15 to 20-point variation in GLD outcomes across local authorities and improve results for children most affected by early language gaps, including those eligible for the early years pupil premium and pupils identified with SEND.

This focused, evidence-informed approach provides a strong platform for raising reception attainment across the North West.

National support available 

Attainment outcomes for vulnerable learners in the North West remain significantly below the national average, and the region has a particularly high proportion of pupils facing additional challenges.

Inclusive mainstream is about ensuring that every pupil, including those with emerging needs, undiagnosed difficulties or other barriers to learning, can access high-quality, inclusive education. Within this priority, we place particular emphasis on SEND, as these pupils often face the greatest risk of disrupted learning, inconsistent progress and exclusion.

Variability in SEND identification, differences in schools’ confidence in the teaching and learning approaches needed to meet diverse needs effectively, unequal access to specialist units within mainstream schools, and inconsistent use of assistive technology can lead to fragmented experiences, particularly for those with complex or emerging needs.

Attendance and attainment data show that disadvantaged pupils, boys, pupils from white working-class backgrounds, and pupils with SEND are more likely to experience disrupted learning and uneven progress. Recent Ofsted reporting reinforces the importance of early identification, high-quality inclusive teaching, curriculum accessibility and data informed decision making to ensure all learners can thrive.

There is a clear sense of urgency in this work. Securing high-quality inclusive mainstream practice is essential not only to improving pupils’ day-to-day experiences and outcomes now, especially for those with SEND, but also to preparing the system for forthcoming SEND reforms. To get real traction, we need rapid strengthening of inclusive practice across classrooms, confident early identification, and more consistent access to the right support at the right time.

In response, this priority focuses on strengthening the identification of SEND needs, embedding inclusive teaching practices, improving transitions between phases and ensuring equitable access to high-quality provision.

This includes building schools’ capacity to use effective classroom approaches, engaging regional and national support networks, and promoting collaboration between mainstream settings, inclusion bases and families, so that improvements happen quickly and sustainably.

Improving attendance through the transition into secondary school and across key stage 3 is therefore a strategic priority for the North West. Data from 2024 to 2025 academic year shows that absence in secondary schools remains significantly higher than in primary (8.6% compared with 5.1%), with a clear increase between year 6 and year 7, and further increases between years 7 and 8.

Persistent absence also increases sharply across phases, rising from 13.1% in primary to 23.8% in secondary and 34.8% in special schools.

Vulnerable groups experience particularly high levels of absence. In 2024 to 2025 persistent absence reached 41.4% for pupils eligible for free school meals, 44.1% for pupils receiving Special Educational Needs (SEN) support, and 38.9% for pupils with an EHCP. Severe absence is also increasing in secondary and special settings, reinforcing the need for earlier identification and targeted intervention.

Within the RISE programme, transition will be used as a strategic lever for improvement. The regional approach will focus on sustaining strong attendance patterns established in primary school and preventing escalation into persistent absence, particularly for pupils in the 5 to 15% absence band.

Focusing on low-level, high-frequency absence across years 5 to 6, 6 to 7 and 7 to 8 will be central to this work. Maintaining year 6 attendance levels into years 7 and 8 in 2023 to 2024 would have seen children attending an additional 1,394,708 sessions across the region, illustrating the potential impact of securing attendance during transition.

The region will focus on improving key stage 2 literacy, particularly writing and reading, through strengthened reading fluency, vocabulary development and writing composition. This will be supported by coherent curriculum progression from key stage 1 and robust formative assessment. Maths at key stage 2 is broadly on track and does not require additional regional intervention at this stage.

At key stage 4, improving maths attainment is the principal driver of overall performance. A key priority is ensuring that the secure foundations developed at key stage 2 are built upon effectively in secondary school. Strengthening curriculum sequencing, academic challenge and cumulative knowledge development through key stage 3 will be essential to support progress by the end of key stage 4.

The region will also focus support for pupils experiencing multiple vulnerabilities, including disadvantage and SEND, to help them make sustained progress. This includes addressing attendance patterns, which disproportionately affect disadvantaged pupils and white working-class pupils in some areas and can compound gaps in attainment over time.

Early years starting points, attendance patterns and regional disadvantage gaps will be monitored closely to inform intervention and support.

Strong practice already exists across many schools, trusts and local authorities. Continued collaboration, effective use of assessment data and inclusive academic pathways will be central to securing sustained improvement.