Secondary Schools continue to improve (Twickenham & Richmond Liberal Democrats)

Secondary Schools continue to improve

January 17, 2010 10:59 AM

gcse table • GCSE results released on 13 January by the Department for Children, Schools and Families confirm that the borough's secondary schools are making good progress with overall results above national averages.

The percentage of pupils matching or exceeding the expected progress in both English and mathematics was above the national average. Expected progress is measured in relation to pupils' grades at Key Stage 2 (their last year of primary school). The Government's key value added indicator shows that seven out of the eight of the borough's schools have made improvements since last year. The tables, based on last year's GCSE results, confirm that the percentage of pupils achieving five or more A*-C grades including English and mathematics increased to 56%, a rise of 8% in the last two years, and six percent above the national average.

Cllr Malcolm Eady, Cabinet Member for Children's Services and Culture on Richmond Council, said: "This is further proof of the steady progress being made by our secondary schools. The average added value score for the borough's secondary schools has shown a significant improvement over the last two years. The number of pupils achieving five or more A*-C grades including English and maths continues to rise and we remain comfortably in the top third of local authorities for this indicator. We have set demanding targets for our schools and there is still much work to do. Their improvement is one of our top priorities and we will continue to work with head teachers, school staff and governors, as well as progressing the academies programme, to ensure we reach the highest possible standards."

The borough has risen to 67th best in the country (out of 151 Local Authorities), based on the percentage of pupils achieving five or more A*-C grades, having been 76th last year. It is 34th in the number achieving five or more, including English and mathematics, from 28th last year.

There are many other factors that are related to the progress that pupils make in a school, such as levels of deprivation or special educational needs. Contextual value added aims to take account of these factors when measuring the effectiveness of a school or the progress made by individual pupils. The 2006 models include the following attainment and contextual factors:  Age; An "In care" indicator; Average and range of prior attainment within the school (KS2-3, KS2-4 and KS3-4 only).; Ethnicity; First language (for given prior attainment); Free School Meals (for given Ethnicity); Gender; Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI); Measures of pupil mobility; Pupil prior attainment; Special Educational Needs

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