A WOKINGHAM borough school is officially the best in Berkshire – and one of England’s top places to study.
The Progress 8 grades have been confirmed for the last academic year, and Maiden Erlegh is among the country’s top 50.
The grades chart the progress that pupils at a secondary school make from Year 7 through to taking their exams in Year 11. The government introduced the scores as a ‘value-added’ measure when they revamped the grading structure from easy-to-understand A-F grades to the new 1-9 system which continues to baffle parents to this day.
The Progess 8 number is devised by comparing pupils results with others from similar starting points.
Publication of such data has been used cautiously since 2020, as a result of the lockdown phases of covid pandemic seeing exams cancelled or postponed.
Maiden Erleigh School in Lower Earley has come top of the tables, with a Progress 8 score of 1.09.
It was ahead of The Holt School (1.03), The Piggott (0.79) and St Crispin’s (0.22).
Schools with an average Progress 8 score were The Forest (0.25), Bohunt (0.2), Bulmershe (0.16), and Waingels (0.13).
Emmbrook (-0.34) and Oakbank (-0.35) were below average.
By comparison, the median figure of state-funded schools in England is -0.03.
Maiden Erlegh had a higher Progress 8 score than Reading’s top performing schools: Kendrick (1.06), Reading School (0.97), and Reading Girls’ (0.61). It has increased by nearly half a grade in the past academic year, while its Attainment 8 score has also gone up.
Some of the borough’s schools, including independents, do not have their Progress 8 results published by the government.
Maiden Erlegh’s headteacher, Paul Gibson, said he is proud of the students and staff who have worked hard to get these “magnificent results”.
In a letter sent to parents, he wrote: “Our Progress 8 score places us in the top 50 schools out of more than 3,700 nationally, including selective schools. This is testament to the hard work of the students and dedication and commitment that our staff show day in, day out.
“We are incredibly proud to share the best set of results the school has ever achieved, and this is a collective effort of our entire school community.”
And this view was echoed by Cllr Prue Bray, Wokingham Borough Council’s executive member for children’s services.
“I would like to congratulate Maiden Erlegh on achieving such excellent outcomes for their pupils. It is great to see them delivering such high quality education,” she said.
Mr Gibson also pointed out that the school’s Key Stage 4 Progress 8 scores were “significantly above the national average for all ability ranges and for students with different needs”.
