BOYS in Darlington are twice as likely to fall behind girls with their basic language skills by the point they start school.

The so-called ‘gender gap’ is the third highest of any local authority area in the country, charity Save the Children said.

In Darlington last year 30 per cent of boys were not meeting the standards set by Government, while for girls the figure was 15 per cent.

But the council’s cabinet member for children and young people, Councillor Cyndi Hughes, said that standards were improving in the town and plans had been drawn up to ensure that continued.

She said: “To help tackle the issue, over the last year, we have been working with nurseries, pre-schools and schools to ensure all families know how to access services to help prepare children for when they start school.

“A number of our schools are also bucking the gender gap trend with boys outperforming girls.”

South Tyneside was another North-East council highlighted in the report – there the gender divide equated to 33 per cent of boys not meeting the standard and 17 per cent girls.

Gareth Jenkins, Save the Children’s UK poverty director, claimed a “whole generation of boys [are] being failed”.

He said: “They are falling behind before they even to get school and that puts their life chances at risk.”

The charity said national support was needed to develop a well-qualified nursery workforce and said there should be a qualified early years teacher in every nursery, with the poorest areas being put first in terms of priority.

It said last year 80,000 boys in England started reception classes “struggling to speak a full sentence or follow simple instructions”.

The charity commissioned research from the University of Bristol and found that the gender gap was smallest in leafy Richmond upon Thames, Surrey, a difference of just 5.4 per cent. There 11 per cent of boys didn’t meet the set standard, while for girls it was just six per cent.

A Department for Education spokeswoman said: "We are making a significant investment in the early years sector and the number of qualified staff is rising with more trained graduates in the workforce and a record number of providers rated Good or Outstanding.

"This investment is paying off, latest figures show more than 80 per cent of children are reaching the expected communication and language skills by age five, but we will continue working with the sector until every child gets the high-quality education they deserve."