In the OECD's annual study of educational performance, the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), girls score better in reading in all countries even at primary level, and much better by the time they are 15.

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Mr Alan Scott, who headed the Medical Research Council study into the effectiveness of a screening programme, welcomed the move.

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Dr Alison Streetly, a medical advisor to the Sickle Cell Society and director of the NHS Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Screening Programme, welcomed the study, and hoped it would help to raise awareness.

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