Why can't schools break free from cycle of chronic underperformance?

Analysis: As Ofsted says almost 500 schools have been letting pupils down for more than a decade, Eleanor Busby looks at what’s behind their continued failure

Secondary school pupils account for 81 per cent of permanent exclusions (PA)

Hundreds of schools have been stuck in a rut of failure for more than a decade – and the Ofsted chief has condemned it as a “scandal” and a “betrayal of children’s futures” in a letter to MPs.

But while the outrage from chief inspector of schools Amanda Spielman has been loud and clear, there has been a lack of explanation as to where this problem comes from – and how it can be fixed.

The analysis of the 490 “stuck” schools – which have been judged below the level of “good” by Ofsted in all inspections since 2005 – found considerable variation across regions, but there was one common pattern: all had a higher proportion of white British pupils eligible for free school meals than the national average.