Postcode lottery on university education

It also reveals that in some parts of England, state-educated teenagers are more than twice as likely to study for a degree at any university than those from other areas of the country.

In total, 62 per cent of young people remained in education for at least six months after taking their A-levels in 2010/11 the data, published by the Department for Education (DfE) shows.

Of these, just under half were at university, with eight per cent at one of the 24 Russell Group institutions, which are considered among the top in the UK.

However the data suggests that a teenager’s chances of going on to higher education, and studying at a leading institution, varies depending on where they live.

In Kirklees 55 per cent of post-16 students went on to university – the highest rate in Yorkshire, while Barnsley had the lowest at 38 per cent. There were also stark contrasts in the proportion of pupils going on to the elite research-led Russell Group universities.

Kirklees and North Yorkshire both saw 13 per cent of A-level students going to these universities but North East Lincolnshire had one of the lowest rates in 
the country at just two per cent while in Barnsley it was three per cent.