A HARINGEY school has been named top of the class after making it into the nation's top five per cent in the league tables

Charlotte Newton

A HARINGEY school has been named top of the class after making it into the nation's top five per cent in the league tables.

Greig City Academy was in the bottom five schools in the borough for GCSE results last year, with only 21 per cent of pupils achieving five or more top GCSEs, including English and maths.

This was almost 26 per cent lower than the national average.

But the school received one of the highest value added scores in the country, meaning its pupils are achieving way above expectations.

The score is calculated by assessing pupils' progress from the age of 11 until they sit their GCSEs. It also takes into account other factors which could affect pupils' overall progress, such as levels of deprivation and personal characteristics.

The score is based around 1,000. A GCSE is worth one point, so a measure of 1006 means that on average, each of the school's pupils achieved the equivalent of one GCSE grade higher than the average attained by similar pupils.

Conversely a score of 994 means the school's pupils achieved one grade lower in one subject on average.

Greig City Academy's value added score was 1029.5 meaning the average pupil earned results five grades higher than expected.

Vice Principal David Hearn, said: "This shows all our pupils make good progress, regardless of their starting point or in terms of ability or ethnicity."

"Although our GCSE results are low, they have improved by six per cent on last year's results. They also reflect the make-up of the year group that sat exams last summer, where 44 per cent of the pupils spoke English as their second language."

At top school Fortismere School in Muswell Hill, 64 per cent of pupils gained five or more GCSEs at grades A*-C, including English and maths. But the school's value added score was 995.6.

Hornsey School for Girls saw 50 per cent of its pupils achieve five good GCSEs including English and maths and gained a value added score of 1010.3.

Alexandra Park School had a similar value added of 1010.5 and 48 per cent of pupils achieved the five GCSEs benchmark while Highgate Wood school had a value added score of 998.8 and 47 per cent of its pupils gained at least five good grades.

The Government's GCSE league tables are out today. They show that in England, 46.7 per cent of pupils gained five A*to C grades, including English and maths, last summer.

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