Fault

Education is always a hot topic in this country where everyone but the teaching unions, associated lefties and the previous Labour government believe that there has been systematic dumbing down stretching over generations.
It's become so bad even Ofsted has noticed...
BBC.

Thousands of bright children are being "systematically failed" by England's non-selective secondaries, education inspectors warn.
A culture of low expectations means England's able pupils are failing to gain top GCSE grades, Ofsted says.
Two-thirds of pupils, some 65,000, who achieved Level 5 in primary school maths and English tests failed to get A* or an A in both subjects at GCSE.
Head teachers questioned the statistical basis of Ofsted's claims.
Association of School and College Leaders general secretary Brian Lightman said: "I have real concerns about Ofsted's evidence base for drawing these conclusions.
"Level 5 is a wide band that includes a range of ability levels, not just the brightest students. The government has said that for children who come into secondary school with a Level 5, expected progress means a B at GCSE. "Of course we want those children to achieve even higher, but for Ofsted to say that they are underachieving if they don't get an A or A* is unfair to those students and their teachers."

Of course it's never the fault of the teachers, it's always the fault of those compiling the reports, of those employers who fiendishly expect kids applying for jobs to be able to read and write. It's undoubtedly the fault of those snobby universities who have remedial classes to bring students up to an acceptable standard to even begin a university course.
In short the only people who don't believe there is a fault are those with a vested interest in not getting the blame.
The problem with the state school system is unfortunately one of the lowest common denominator, where everyone is treat the same within a broad set of bands. There's no pressure or emphasis for a pupil to push themselves as frankly it wouldn't really make a damn to the school if they did, they'd still have to share the same classroom as Chavvy McChav and his mates who take up nearly 99% of the teachers time as the teacher struggles to cope with their antics. That's assuming the teacher actually gives a damn and is good at their job in the first place.
The education minister has started new style exams to be introduced soon, perhaps he's have been better served by getting people into teaching who can and will get the best out of pupils whilst coming up with a system of ridding Chavvy McChav and his mates into some activity which exhausts and keeps them occupied without involving highly qualified staff.
I somehow doubt that education reform will get very far, there are too many vested interests in making sure it fails whilst shifting the blame.