School named top of class

A MACCLESFIELD school is among the best in Cheshire according to a new education guide.

The Real Schools Guide 2020 lists the top state funded primaries in the county and puts Ash Grove Academy, on Belgrave Road, at number seven.

This makes it the highest ranked in Macclesfield and the fifth best in Cheshire East.

Reach Plc’s data unit, who compiled the guide, says it gives a more comprehensive picture than traditional league tables.

It takes into account 45 different data points – including not just key stage two results but factors like progress, pupilteacher ratios and absence rates. Lisa Finnegan, principal at Ash Grove, said: “We are delighted and extremely proud that Ash Grove features as one of the top ten highest performing schools in Cheshire and the highest performing state funded school in Macclesfield.

“The guide recognises overall performance in 45 different data points. This is a clear indication of the team work, dedication and strive for excellence which is prevalent throughout the staff of Ash Grove.”

Parents can go online to browse the full data, compare different schools, and find links to contact details and recent Ofsted reports.

This year’s results put Bexton Primary School in Knutsford on top as the best school in the county.

Schools are rated in the guide based upon results, teaching, progress, and attendance.

The ranking system was put together from the latest publicly available data covering up to the 2018/19 school year, broken into four indicators.

National league tables only look at overall key stage two results and progress scores, which may mean schools which help all pupils make progress but only get slightly better than average results overall may be overlooked.