Not a single penny of the £1 billion extra “catch up” money for education will come to Cambridge’s Sixth Form colleges that have been “unfairly forgotten” according to the local MP.

The bulk of the cash is earmarked to enable head teachers to set up small tuition groups for those who need extra help in the next academic year. But it will only be available to state primary and secondary schools, not Sixth Form Colleges, meaning thousands of students at Hills Road and Long Road are set to lose out.

At Hills Road there are 2500 year 11s and 12s studying for their A-levels. Their Principal Jo Trump who has written to the Education Secretary said: “We are not expecting miracles, but we are expecting equity and we are expecting clarity.”

Daniel Zeichner MP said: “It is clear the government have once again forgotten about sixth form colleges. This is also in a context where post-16 funding is already significantly less per student than pre-16. How can this possibly be right? Young people at Sixth Form Colleges have largely been out of education for 6 months and have suffered as much as their peers. Some will need catch up help and additional mental health support. I urge the government to think again, so no young person is left behind.”