PRIMARY schools across Greater Manchester have chalked up better results than ever before, according to government league tables published today.

And schools in some of the region's poorest performing authorities are closing the gap on their higher-ranking neighbours.

The government's annual league tables rank primary schools according to the proportion of 11-year old pupils who reach level four in Key Stage Two exams in English, maths and science.

Across the country the number of children to make the benchmark grade in English has remained constant at 75 per cent, in maths it fell by one per cent to 71 and in science it rose by two per cent to 87.

Five authorities - Bolton, Bury, Stockport Trafford and Wigan - recorded results that were above national averages in all three subjects.

But the remainder fell short of their target.

Keeping pace

However the three poorest performers - Manchester, Oldham and Rochdale - are among just five of the region's authorities to keep pace with national trends that have seen the combined score rise by 40 marks since 1998.

The others to keep pace are Oldham and Tameside. Bury, where 48 of the 66 schools recorded above average marks - remains the region's top performing authority, ranking 15th nationally.

Manchester remained the poorest performing ranking 133rd out of the country's 150 local education authorities.

Just 48 of the city's 132 primary schools matched or exceeded national averages. But 62 are improving faster than national trends over three years.

The biggest one-year jump in results in the city was at St Wilfrid's RC, in Hulme, where the aggregate scores rose by 108, to 248.

Chief education officer David Johnston said: ''You have to look at the results against previous years and yet again Manchester has demonstrated further improvement.''

Pupils at Stockport's 89 primary schools kept the authority above national averages - with 59 schools beating the national average and 35 improving faster than the national trend. It ranked 21st nationally.

Despite recording the biggest fall in results since last year - a drop of 4.8 per cent - Trafford is still the third highest authority in Greater Manchester - ranking 30th nationally.

Wigan schools continued to perform above national averages - with an average aggregate score of 239.4, ranking them 44th in the country.

Bolton - with an aggregate of 238 - was the only other of the 10 authorities to beat national averages and ranks 49th nationally.

Tameside was the next ranking authority in the region. Forty-six of the authority's 77 schools beat the national average and 48 have made improvements in excess of national trends.

Salford was seventh in Greater Manchester authorities with an aggregate score of 228.3.

Rochdale boosted its results by more than any other of the region's authorities - raising their aggregate average from 219.7 to 227.6.

Oldham has made the biggest improvement- raising their 174.2 aggregate to 227.5 over three years. But they still rank ninth in Greater Manchester and 103rd across the country.

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