FOUR of Greater Manchester's 10 councils are in the top division of local authorities, new league tables reveal today (Thursday).

Bolton, Stockport, Tameside and Wigan all get the maximum four stars - placing them in the "excellent" category.

Derbyshire and Lancashire also receive top marks in the tables, drawn up by the Audit Commission.

Manchester maintains its three-star ("good") rating, while Oldham, Trafford and Rochdale and Bury receive two apiece.

Cheshire receives three stars and - as exclusively revealed in the Manchester Evening News yesterday - Salford has finally shed its one-star ("weak") rating and moved up to two ("fair").

The north west now boasts eight four-star local authorities - more than anywhere else. And the fact 40 per cent of Greater Manchester councils have a top rating compares with a national average of just under 25 per cent.

Oldham, Salford and Stockport have all moved up a star, while only Cheshire and Bury have gone down a category.

James Strachan, chairman of the Audit Commission, said: "Over the last four years we have seen some outstanding success stories where councils have transformed their ability to deliver services that are valued by the public."

The ratings are based on ongoing assessments of different things the council provides - such as education, social services and dealing with waste.

That is combined with a score for how well the authority is run to produce a final score.

For the first time, the ratings this year include a measure of how quickly the councils are getting better.

Derbyshire is said to be "improving strongly", while Bolton, Lancashire, Oldham, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford and Wigan are "improving well".

Manchester, Rochdale and Cheshire are "improving adequately", while Bury's rate of progress is still under review.

Councils with the highest star ratings are given more freedom in how they spend their money.

Sir Sandy Bruce Lockhart, chair of the Local Government Association, said: "The Audit Commission has recognised in its report that 98 per cent of authorities are delivering above adequate requirements in their use of resources."

Tweet