Primary school teachers reported more children are joining reception not “school ready” last year, a survey has found.
A survey by early years charity Kindred Squared found 37 per cent of children were not ready for school, an increase from 33 per cent in 2024, according to staff.
The charity defines “school ready” as children being ready to “ready to access the learning and development opportunities available to them in Reception, where this is not due to
a previously identified special educational need or disability (SEND)”.
The government is aiming for 75 per cent of five year olds to achieve a “good level of development” by 2028.
Kindred Squared surveyed 1,000 primary school staff, including teachers, senior leaders and teaching assistants, and another 1,000 parents.
The charity found the gap widened regionally, with 45 per cent of children not being school ready in the north east compared to 34 per cent in the east Midlands, eastern England and London.
It also found that 26 per cent of children starting reception were not toilet trained, up from 24 per cent in the previous two years.
A quarter missing ‘basic language skills’
The survey asked, for the first time how much time was being taken up with nappy changing or going to the toilet. Staff reported helping these pupils is taking up an average of 1.4 hours of each school day.
Staff said about 25 per cent of reception children didn’t have basic language skills, such as saying their name, up from 23 per cent previously. But fewer children were unable to communicate their needs – 26 per cent down from 29 per cent.
More than half (52 per cent) of primary staff said the proportion of children not school ready this year has increased – up from 49 per cent in 2024. Just 12 per cent thought it had decreased.
Staff estimated that children are missing out on 2.4 hours of daily class teaching time due to the catch-up needs. This is up from 2.1 hours in 2024.
However, 88 per cent of parents said their child was ready for school. The charity said this “highlighted a persistent gap between parental confidence and classroom experience”.
Felicity Gillespie, Kindred Squared director, said: “Primary school staff report frustration at the number of parents believing schools are responsible for the development of basic life skills and independence.”
‘Complex’ reasons
In 2024-25, 68.3 per cent of children had a “good level of development” in their early years foundation stage profile assessments – up 0.6 percentage points from the previous year.
The Department for Education said while challenges remain, the “continued upward trend suggests that outcomes in reception are improving over time, reflecting the work of early years settings and reception teachers in supporting children’s development”.
Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary at ASCL school leaders’ union, said the reasons for a lack of school readiness are “complex”, pointing to a 15 year decline in local support services.
“Many families are struggling to cope with the pressures of life, and are themselves often suffering from poor mental health and wellbeing.
“Schools put a huge amount of work into providing support for children who are not school ready but it does mean that these youngsters are already behind their peers right at the outset of their education. Their job is made all the more difficult by the fact that schools are themselves so poorly funded.”
He added the government was doing the “right things” in rolling out family hubs and expanding childcare but they aren’t “quick fixes”.
A DfE spokesperson said: “This government has a clear mission to make sure tens of thousands more children start school ready to learn, and we are already taking action to make that a reality.”
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