RAISE is no more. The performance report has been scrapped and a replacement is being developed. But, as a reminder of RAISE’s bewildering colour coding, I would like to share a scene from my new play, entitled RAISE: a cautionary tale.

(We open in a head’s office. A DfE representative has come to visit.)

Headteacher: Let me make sure I remember this correctly. Blue means results are significantly below average and green is significantly above. Right?

DfE: No. It’s red and green now.

H: OK. So, red is significantly below, and green is significantly above. Got it.

DfE: Unless it’s prior attainment. Then blue is significantly below.

H: Fine. Blue is significantly below for prior attainment, but red is significantly below for other stuff and green is significantly above regardless. That’s it?

DfE: Yes.

H: You sure? You don’t look sure.

DfE: Well…it also depends on the shade of green or red.

H: What do you mean?

DfE: Look, it’s simple. Dark red means significantly below and in the bottom 10 per cent nationally. Light red means significantly below but not in the bottom 10 per cent. Dark green is significantly above and in the top 10 per cent and light green is significantly above but not in the top 10 per cent.

H: Understood. Shades of red and green now show whether data is significantly below or above average, and possibly in the bottom or top 10 per cent.

DfE: But only for progress.

H: But there are shades of green and red for attainment, too. Here, on pages 9, 11 and 12. See?

DfE: Yes, but that’s different.

H: How?

DfE: For a start, it’s not a solid box. It’s an outline. They show the size of the gap from the national average as a number of pupils.

H: And the colours?

DfE: Glad you asked. If you are two or more pupils below, you get a dark-red box. One pupil below and it’s pink. Light green is for one pupil above the national average, and a dark-green box is for two or more pupils above.

H: And what does that tell us?

DfE: We define gaps of -2 or lower as “well below”.

H: So, let me get this straight. We have dark and light shades of red and green to indicate data that is either statistically below or above, and either in or not in, the top or bottom 10 per cent, or gaps that equate to one or two or more pupils below or above national average. Am I there now?

DfE: Yes...Unless we’re talking about prior attainment, of course.

(The headteacher collapses, sobbing.)

James Pembroke founded Sig+, an independent school data consultancy, after 10 years working with the Learning and Skills Council and local authorities