Grammars 'should help weak schools'

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Sir Cyril Taylor, chairman of the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, said grammars need to do more to help children from the poorest families.

He said he would not want to close the remaining 164 selective grammars in England but suggested that every one of them could form partnerships with weaker schools nearby.

Sir Cyril's comments came as Tory leader David Cameron faced protests within his own party over his decision to ditch long-standing Conservative support for grammars.

Sir Cyril told MPs that only about 1% of pupils in grammar schools were from families which are so poor that they are entitled to free school meals.

Speaking to the Commons Education Select Committee, he said: "One grammar school in Gloucester is "going out on to the council estates to identify very able children from socially disadvantaged backgrounds."

In another example he cited a partnership between a grammar school in Reading which is "linking" with an "under-performing" school nearby.

"Why can't all 164 grammar schools help an under-performing school?" he said.

Sir Cyril is a key figure in the Government's school policies as an adviser to Education Secretary Alan Johnson who oversees the specialist schools and academies programmes.