How can a whole borough have no A-levels?

How could there be an entire local authority in England where no pupil can take an A-level?

That’s the prospect facing parents in Knowsley on Merseyside.

If that was happening in green-wellied Oxfordshire or the sharp-elbowed London boroughs there would have been a storming of the barricades. Howls of anguish would be rattling the windows of the Department for Education.

There would be outrage about university places. Parents would want to know why their children had to fight for places in other authorities.

There would be warnings about social mobility going into reverse and a great leap backwards.

……

Sir Peter Lampl, chairman of the Sutton Trust, said: “It is important that young people have the opportunity to access a good choice of A-levels wherever they live.

“For social mobility and access to Russell Group universities, this often means academic subjects like physics, chemistry, further maths and languages.”

Sir Peter said that despite funding challenges, it was “crucial” that “such choices aren’t curtailed”.

Read his full report here. Other coverage quoting Sir Peter is below.