by Matt Trinder

Industrial reporter

TORY ministers have presided over years of decline in post-16 education, with younger students from poorer backgrounds losing out the most, Labour says.

Analysis from the party published last night shows the number of further education students has fallen by a quarter since 2015, with the amount of younger and poorer students dropping fastest.

The total from deprived backgrounds has declined by nearly a third over the last six years, according to Labour, rising to almost 40 per cent among under-19s.