The Education Secretary has called on regulators to investigate why nearly twice as many private schools pupils are receiving extra time in exams compared to those in comprehensive schools.

Figures show 27 per cent of pupils at non-selective state schools got extra time, compared with 42 per cent of their privately-educated counterparts.

Bridget Phillipson said she was ‘concerned’ about the difference and had asked exams regulator Ofqual to look into the reasons behind it.

Thérèse Coffey, who served in a variety of ministerial roles under recent Tory governments, denied private parents were ‘gaming the system’.

‘There’s a factor of life that if you don’t ask, you don’t get,’ she told Newsnight, adding that Ofqual was the best organisation to investigate why there was such a ‘disparity’.

Private schools are known to be better than their state counterparts at navigating the system to give their pupils the best chance.

Ms Phillipson told the programme: ‘I am concerned about the difference that you see there… and this is something I’ve discussed with the regulator.

‘What we can’t currently be clear about is whether that leads to different outcomes in terms of exam results, and that’s what they are looking to understand,’ she said.

Asked by presenter Faisal Islam whether she was concerned about private schools ‘abusing’ the system or state schools ‘failing’ SEN pupils, Ms Phillipson replied: ‘We do face a big challenge in the state system supporting pupils with special educational needs.

‘I’m determined to reform that system. That’s a much wider question than this issue in isolation.’

Questioned again on whether some parents would be right to feel aggrieved if their child was not entitled to extra time while many of his peers were, Ms Phillipson added: ‘Parents will always push for a good outcome for their child – that’s human nature. The challenge that we face is ensuring the system is equitable and there is a problem at the moment in terms of the differences that are there.

‘It’s why Ofqual as the regulator needs to look at this carefully.’

The number of pupils being given extra time to do the GCSE and A-level exams because of special needs has risen by more than 42 per cent over four years.

Department for Education (DfE) data shows 365,915 pupils were granted 25 per cent more time than other candidates to complete their exam papers in 2023 – up from 256,710 in 2019.

It means that more than one in four of all pupils sitting the exams last year received extra time.

Extra time is granted as an ‘access arrangement’ to pupils who have learning difficulties or disabilities.

Eligible pupils must either have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) confirming their condition, or must score low in a specially-designed test which includes speed of writing and reading and cognitive processing.

Pupils with well-known conditions including dyslexia would be eligible to apply for extra time.

But according to exam board documents, those with ‘social, emotional and mental health needs’ can also apply.

It comes following a rise in the diagnosis of children with special needs in the UK.

Last year, UCL research found the proportion of boys aged 10 to 16 diagnosed with Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) had more than doubled between 2000 and 2018.

Extra time in exams can benefit pupils especially in those subjects where many people do not finish papers, such as maths.

Despite the popularity of private schools among many parents, Labour’s decision to levy VAT on fees is driving thousands to move their children to the state sector.

Private school fees will be subject to a 20 per cent rate of VAT from January when Labour ends an exemption for education, Rachel Reeves confirmed in her Budget.

Critics of the policy, which will hit parents £2,000 each per pupil on average, have branded it a ‘tax on aspiration’ and warned it will simply force more parents to send their children to the already overburdened state sector.

New data provides fresh evidence an exodus is already underway, with 124 local councils in England, Scotland and Wales receiving 3,011 applications from private school pupils to move to a state school between June 1 and September 9.

The figures, obtained in Freedom of Information requests, are likely to understate the scale of private school exits given a further 83 councils either did not respond or said they did not have the data.