WHILE primary schools have raised their game across the country, the regions schools present a mixed bag.

New figures published by the Department for Education show that the number of primary schools failing to give pupils a good grounding in the three Rs has halved from 1,310 last year to just 521 this year.

This means that more than 14,000 primary schools reached the threshold of at least 60 per cent of 11 year olds reaching the expected Level 4 standard in English and maths tests.

Schools that fail to reach this threshhold are at risk of being closed and turned into academies.

Among the North-East schools appearing in a list of the top 200 in the country, based on the percentage of pupils achieving level 4 in both English and maths were Chandlers Ridge Academy, Nunthorpe, Middlesbrough (100 per cent), St Georges Academy, Middleton St George, near Darlington (100 per cent) Sacred Heart, Hartlepool (98 per cent) and Acklam Whin (98 per cent).

North-East schools which featured in the category of most improved since 2009 included: Seaham Trinity; Delves Lane, Consett; Mount Pleasant, Darlington; Skerne Park, Darlington; Ravensworth, Middlesbrough and Leadgate Community, Consett.

North-East schools which featured in the highest average points per pupil category included: Chandlers Ridge Academy, Nunthorpe, Middlesbrough; Acklam Whin, Middlesbrough and Archbishop of York, in York.

Shotton Primary School in County Durham is among 100 schools singled out for praise for helping to boost the Key Stage scores of their pupils.

But a number of schools from the region also feature in a list of the worst performing 100 primary schools in terms of Key Stage percentages.

These includes Sacriston Junior School, Durham City; Braeburn Community Junior School, Scarborough; South Stanley Junior School; and Barrowcliff Community Junior School in Scarborough.

In a league table ranking all 142 English local authorities according to the percentage of pupils achieving level 4 in English and maths Darlington finished 31st Hartlepool finished 57th, Redcar and Cleveland finished 60th, County Durham finished 65th, Stockton on Tees finished 77th , York finished 79th, North Yorkshire finished 91st and Middlesbrough finished 131st.

Vane Road Primary School in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, which had 60 eligible pupils, recorded 0 per cent for both English and maths after an inquiry found procedural weaknesses in the marking of some tests.