David Bell, Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, argues that while the National Literacy Strategy has done a great deal to improve literacy standards, there are still issues to be addressed.

There is no question about the rise in standards of children's literacy in this country since the National Literacy Strategy (NLS) was introduced in 1998. Our evidence suggests that the teaching of reading and writing is improving with more teaching found to be good or better and less to be unsatisfactory. But there are still important issues that need to be tackled to ensure all pupils are able to read and write competently and confidently by the time they leave primary school.

I often get asked about my thoughts on the concept and philosophy behind the NLS. The debate over how best to teach children to read and write has often been extreme and the NLS was introduced in a blaze of publicity. But ultimately the results speak for themselves.

As a former primary school headteacher, working prior to the introduction of the strategy, I recognised problems with the teaching of literacy. Children who had books at home and picked up the rules quickly were fine. But there were many children who were not, and if they went to a school without a structured approach to teaching reading and writing, and committed, knowledgeable staff, they struggled. Now things are different; there is a framework in place for teachers and strategies to intervene when children are having difficulty. The idea that we should return to a laissez-faire approach to the teaching of reading and writing is, quite frankly, bunkum.

A recent Ofsted report, Reading for Purpose and Pleasure - An evaluation of the teaching of reading in primary schools, examined the attainment and reading habits of children from five to 11 years old. The report found that despite a rise in standards, the gulf between schools that tackle weaknesses in reading and those that do not continues to grow. This is not a problem exclusive to schools in areas of social deprivation. Some schools face significant challenges but do extremely well in giving children the best chance of being able to read confidently.

Headteachers who put reading at the heart of the school's work and who play an active role are the most successful. These schools have an honest and open approach to the problems they face. Teachers work hard, involving parents using initiatives such as home-school contracts, in order to raise standards. I recognise that this isn't an easy task, but the problem is not insurmountable.

Our report looked at the concept of reading for pleasure. I feel strongly about this and cannot extol the benefits of reading widely enough. However, I also know that children need to be excited by the reading material that's around them. The Progress in International Reading Literacy study of 2001 highlighted that, for a country near the top of the table when it comes to literacy, British children don't tend to read for enjoyment in the way that other European children do.

Research has shown that girls continually perform better than boys in both reading and writing. We have to ask why. There is some evidence to suggest that pupils' core reading experience in most primary schools is fiction based. But research carried out in 2003 by MORI indicates that boys are "significantly more likely than girls to say that they are encouraged to read if the book is about a place, subject or hobby in which they are interested". This fits well with our evidence that the best schools have a wide variety of books to choose from (school libraries continue to play a pivotal role) and intervene to ensure children progress with their reading.

Our NLS evaluation in 2003 identified teachers' subject knowledge as an obstacle to improving standards and this is often still the case. Many teachers struggle with the myriad of literacy objectives and there are concerns about some teachers' ability to assess children accurately. This is a real problem for pupils with gaps in knowledge who are at risk of underachieving. They are included in lessons but their needs are not always met. Some teachers continue to plough on with coverage of the literacy framework rather than responding to pupils' individual needs.

Teachers also need to know that concentrating on phonics alone is not enough. The best schools teach phonics alongside a broader range of reading strategies - encouraging pupils to read for meaning, understanding and accuracy.

It is now vitally important that as well as celebrating the rise in standards, we look closely at those stubborn issues that persist, in particular the gap between children who are learning to read by the time they leave primary school and those who continue to struggle. It is unacceptable that schools serving very similar communities can differ so much in how successfully they teach children to read and write. That might have been understandable 10 years ago. Now, there is no excuse.

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