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Hundreds of schools in middle-class areas such as Surrey are "coasting" and delivering poor results, the Prime Minister said today.
In a keynote speech, he issued a "wake-up call" about the relative failure of secondaries in more affluent areas which cannot blame social deprivation for their performance.
He highlighted two inner-city London schools whose results outshone schools in Oxfordshire and Surrey.
"It's not just failing schools we need to tackle," he said. "It's coasting schools, too - the ones whose results have either flat-lined or where they haven't improved as much as they could have."
His speech, at the opening of a free school in Norwich, was seen as a deliberate contrast to Nick Clegg's speeches pledging to target poorer pupils.
Mr Cameron is under pressure to reassure Tory MPs and voters that the Coalition is in touch with middle-class anxieties. The two London schools, Walworth Academy and Burlington Danes Academy in Hammersmith, have a high number of pupils on free school meals.
But they achieved superb results, with 70 and 75 per cent gaining five or more good GCSEs, including English and maths. Only a minority of schools in Oxfordshire and Surrey, counties that he and Education Secretary Michael Gove represent, could make the same boast.
"Only 16 state secondary schools in these two relatively affluent counties did better than those two inner city schools," he said."Put another way, more than four out of five state schools in Surrey and Oxfordshire are doing worse than two state schools in relatively deprived parts of inner London."
Mr Cameron went on: "That must be a wake-up call. Why is there this difference? Why are these schools coasting along?" The Prime Minister also said he favoured "elitism" rather than "prizes for all", along with strong discipline.
Sally Coates, principal of Burlington Danes Academy, said: "Fifty per cent of our students are on free school meals and we take from the biggest estates, but we get proper, academic, traditional GCSE results. If we can get these results why can't every other school?"
Reader views (4)
It is very unlikely that many schools in middle class areas are coasting. The Sutton Trust data and the Target minimum grades are used to identify underachievers. Ofsted then target the school. It is unlikely that the senior management would be in their posts for long after a critical visit from Ofsted.
- RichardHEARD, london uk, 11/09/2011 18:44
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Where is your evidence for this, 'devonladinlondon?' I can't find any for your sweeping statement about results!
- liz, London, 11/09/2011 15:07
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Great> About time this was said. Those of us who work in inner city schools know how cosy these so called successful middle class schools are-and they don't produce anywhere near the results inner city schools produce.
For once, well done Mr Cameron!
- devonladinlondon, london and devon, 09/09/2011 17:15
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Great! About time this was said. Those of us who work in inner city schools know how tough it is and also know that many of the so called good schools in nice middle class areas are not good at all!
- devonladinlondon, london and devon, 09/09/2011 17:06
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