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Mandatory reading test to be introduced for 13-year-olds

The government aims to identify literacy gaps early by introducing a mandatory reading test for Year 8 pupils, targeting disadvantaged children and improving outcomes across subjects.

  • On Thursday, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson announced compulsory reading tests for 13-year-olds to be taken at the end of Year 8, with results shared with the Department for Education and Ofsted.
  • The DfE says pupils who struggle to read often struggle across subjects, while research shows white pupils from disadvantaged homes arrive at secondary already disengaged, according to Professor John Jerrim and Renaissance Learning.
  • The DfE has pledged almost �30 million to improve reading and writing, while Key Stage 3 tests, taken at 14, were scrapped in 2008 over burden and delivery issues.
  • Teaching unions warned the new test would increase workload and stress, and Daniel Kebede, General Secretary of the National Education Union, cautioned results could be published school-by-school, risking punitive labelling and narrowed curricula.
  • Next steps: the Government's Schools White Paper due in the coming months will set out proposals, while the curriculum and assessment review led by Professor Becky Francis may shape Year 8 checks and result sharing with parents without league table publication.
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8 Articles

The IndependentThe Independent
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The Independent (US)The Independent (US)
Lean Left

Compulsory reading test to be introduced for 13-year-olds

One union leader is unhappy with the plans

·London, United Kingdom
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The Times broke the news in United Kingdom on Thursday, September 25, 2025.
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