Ministers have been asked not to slash National Tutoring Programme (NTP) funding while it is still taking hold in schools, as new figures show poorer pupils are nearly catching up with wealthier peers in terms of tuition.
Research published by The Sutton Trust shows in 2021-22 the proportion of pupils accessing any form of tutoring was almost level between the most and least deprived.
Of year 11s from the highest-earning households, 39 per cent received tuition, 20 per cent of which was private.
But 37 per cent of year 11 pupils from households in the lowest quartile of earners also received tuition.
