Leeds primary school league tables released

The DfE has released new primary school league table data for all schools in England.

Local level data has been published by the DfE, charting 11-year-olds' attainment in every school in England in the national curriculum tests, or SATS.

But while Yorkshire's education authorities' performance has long ranked among the lowest in the country, analysis does show that it is continuing to improve in Leeds.

Out of 9,338 primary school leavers who took SATS exams in Leeds this year, 62 per cent reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

This is in comparison to 65 per cent in England - and 63 per cent in Yorkshire. But it is an improvement on last year, of a two per cent rise.

“As a child friendly city, our aim is for Leeds be the best city for learning," said Coun Jonathan Pryor, executive member for learning, skills and employment at Leeds City Council.

“We of course have more work to do, but I am really encouraged that the percentage of children reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths increased this year, with the gap between Leeds and national narrowing to three percentage points."

Measuring progress of pupils within the area's school, Leeds is performing better than the national average, he added, but the authority was still committed to further improving education outcomes.

"This is our focus on ensuring that all children and young people are supported to achieve their best at school and to reach their potential.”

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Nationwide, it emerged in September, 65 per cent of pupils met the expected standard across all SATS tests, which included reading, writing and maths.

Now the new data breaks this down to single school level, making analysis possible by local area and by individual school.

A gender gap is evident, with girls in Leeds continuing to fare better than boys in the tests with 10 per cent more girls than boys reaching expected levels overall.

While just seven out of Yorkshire's 15 education authorities matched the national average, this is a marked difference from 2015 when 11 of the 15 fell short.

There is a wide variance across the region, with 61 per cent of children meeting expected standard in Doncaster, 62 per cent in Leeds, and 68 per cent in York.