The Durham University study suggests that the attainment gap is larger than previously thought Independent school fees average around £12,000 a year for day pupils and £30,000 for boarders. Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images Independently-educated pupils receive a boost equivalent to two years of extra schooling over state school pupils even after adjusting for social and economic bias, according to new …

Children who attend private schools benefit from the equivalent of two years’ extra education by the time they are 16, research suggests. Academics from Durham University analysed differences in attainment between state and private school pupils, taking their prior attainment, family background and gender into account. Private pupils were ahead of their state school counterparts at ages four, eight, 10 …