The grammar school system - a topic never far from people's minds

Ofsted chief Sir Michael Wilshaw attacked the grammar system this week, saying he doesn’t think it works any more; that these schools no longer drive social mobility and are, instead, “stuffed” with middle-class children.

Of course, there will always be some children from less privileged backgrounds that benefit from the system, that make it to grammar school and do well – sometimes with a good deal more drive than their middle class counterparts.

But the fact that this percentage is so low now is a worry. Nationally, the number of children at grammar school who are eligible for free school meals, a key indicator for poverty, stands at a paltry three per cent.

It would be a sad day indeed if such children were slowly squeezed from our grammars, as more affluent youngsters benefited instead.

That is precisely one of the reasons why Bucks’ grammar schools together decided to change the format of the 11-plus test this year. How successful that was remains to be seen, with figures still not publicly available.

More telling, perhaps, will be next year’s results, which will come after details of the revamped exam papers are more widely known and therefore the tests become more easily coached.

The whole point of the 11-plus is that it should be administered to a level playing field. As soon as private coaching is introduced then that field becomes full of hills and ditches.

If Sir Michael is right, and the grammar school system is not working as once intended, then it risks simply becoming another way for privileged families to put more distance between themselves and those less well off.

We have some excellent schools, whether grammar or upper. If the system is no longer working, perhaps the time is coming for an overhaul.

If grammars can’t help solve the problem of social mobility, then they risk becoming an elitist measure of privilege instead – and that would certainly not be an education system to be proud of.