Chinese students are two years ahead of their white British peers by the time they finish their GCSEs, an analysis of official data shows.

Chinese pupils, who make up 0.4 per cent of the total student population, perform “significantly better” in Maths and English GCSE and by age 16 they are 24.8 months ahead of their white British counterparts, according to a new report by the Education Policy Institute (EPI).

Analysing figures from the Department for Education’s national pupil database, researchers also found that Indian students are over a year (14.2 months) ahead of white British pupils by the end of GCSEs.

Meanwhile, black Caribbean students lag 2.2 months behind white British pupils, and have made the least progress since 2011.

The report also found that poor teenagers are 18 months behind their wealthier peers in their GCSEs and that progress in closing the divide has come to a standstill.

The GCSE attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their wealthier counterparts widened slightly between 2017 and 2018, the EPI's annual report suggests.

Progress has slumped for the first time since 2011 and, if the recent five-year trend continues, the research concludes it will take more than 500 years for the gap to close.