The director of Oxfordshire Racial Equality Council Patrick Tolani is right to raise the poor performance of ethnic minority pupils in Oxfordshire schools.

We have reported in previous years how this issue has been acknowledged by Oxfordshire County Council, yet massive disparities in performance persist.

What is most worrying is that not only are the GCSE results of ethnic minority pupils behind those of their white peers in Oxfordshire, they are also considerably behind those of their ethnic minority peers nationally.

General levels of performance in Oxfordshire have improved in recent years. They had to as the county has consistently underperformed against its peers for a number of years.

The level of underperformance among ethnic minority pupils has to be a serious concern. The county council says it takes the figures seriously. They are so stark that the county cannot escape the conclusion that serious action is needed.