Bradford secondary schools have shown a marked improvement with test results beating the national average improvement rate.

Early statistics from the Department for Education and Skills show that 64 per cent of 14-year-old pupils in Bradford achieved the benchmark Key Stage 3 Level 5 or higher in English, up from 57 per cent last year.

Maths results increased by six per cent to 60 per cent, with science test results up by two per cent to 55.

These figures were well ahead of the national overall rate of improvement, where English rose by three percentage points and maths and science by just one per cent.

Mark Pattinson, managing director of Education Bradford, said: "Pupils, teachers and schools deserve to be congratulated on their hard work and achievements.

"It is important to stress that these are still provisional results, both for Bradford and nationally, and we would hope for small further improvements when the final figures are published."

New categories of reading and writing were introduced at Key Stage two - taken by 11-year-olds - and Key Stage three.

These changes aimed to provide a more accurate assessment of the separate English skills, providing teachers and pupils with more information about performance.

And at primary schools seven-year-olds taking Key Stage 1 closed up on the national average in reading, with 83 per cent reaching the benchmark level or above, just one per cent less than the national figure. Writing and maths in this category also followed the national upward trend.

At Key Stage 2 11-year-olds were broadly in line with the national trend, sustaining last year's substantial gains which saw the city's primary schools jumping up ten places from the bottom of the national league tables.

Councillor David Ward, Executive Member for Education, thanked everyone for their efforts in continuing to improve standards.

"We are continuing to close the gap on other local authorities but we realise there is still a lot to be done to build on the progress we have made so far," he said. And Phil Green, Bradford Council's Director of Education, said he was pleased with the increase in test success.

"There is a great deal of hard work being carried out in the district's schools and everyone involved should be pleased with what is being achieved," he said.

"We are aware there is still a lot of work to be done to get to where we want to be but this is another positive step along that road."

Schools Section