City of York Council's secondary schools have achieved their best ever Key Stage 3 results this year, according to government figures released today (Wednesday, 19 December).

The Department for Education and Skills (DfES) published final results for this year's Key Stage 3 tests for 14 year olds today. They show that:

At Level 5+, the expected level of achievement for 14 year olds, York schools perform well above the national average in all subjects. 76 per cent of young people achieved the expected level in English (compared to 69 per cent nationally), 77 per cent in Mathematics (71 per cent nationally) and 74 per cent in Science (68 per cent nationally)

9 out of 11 secondary schools have improved since last year (based on the DfES Improvement Measure which takes into account Key Stage 3 Level 5+ results in all subjects)

York schools ranked 19 out of 150 Local Education Authorities in the country based on their Level 5+ performance, putting it in the top 15 per cent nationally.

The performance tables also include a measure showing how much 'value' each school has added. This measure is based on the progress made by individual pupils between Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 3.

The performance tables show that:

Between Key Stages 2 and 3, York's Valued Added score was 100.7 which was significantly above the national average of 99.9. This score places York in the top 6 performing LEAs in the country based on Value Added.

Over half York's secondary schools were in the top 25 per cent in the country based on their value added score.

8 of 11 York secondary schools improved their value added performance compared to last year.

Patrick Scott, director of Education and Leisure, City of York Council said: "We are delighted with this year's Key Stage 3 performance. Not only have schools produced their best ever results in english, mathematics and science, but they have improved their Value Added performance. To be ranked sixth in the country is a fantastic achievement for York schools.

"These results clearly demonstrate the excellent work which is going on in York secondary schools. Young people and staff can be justifiably proud of all their hard work and effort which has really paid off. It also provides a great platform for future GCSE success in two years time."