In July 2004 the Second Biannual Report of the Programme Manager of the Pupils First Project reported the academic attainment of the Pupils First cohort as:

Key Stage 2
75% of pupils achieved Level 4 and above in English
78% of pupils achieved Level 4 and above in Maths

This includes 9% of pupils who achieved Level 5 in English and 12% of pupils who achieved Level 5 in Maths.

Key Stage 3
In Key Stage 3 in English 71% of Pupils First pupils attained a Level 5+ compared to the Sunderland average of 62%.

In Maths Key Stage 3 78% of Pupils First pupils achieved a Level 5+ compared to the national average of 73%.

In Science 62% of Pupils First pupils attained a level 5+ compared to the Sunderland average of 59% and the national average of 66%.

Key Stage 4
The analysis that 99% of the Pupils First cohort achieved 5 or more A* to G grades and 95% gained 5 or more A* to G grades including Maths and English. The percentage of pupils (39%) achieving 5+ A* to C is below the Sunderland average. However, this represents a significant achievement given that at the beginning of the project none of these 'borderline' pupils were considered on target to achieve a pass at this grade.