Top 600 primary schools (The 2014Sunday Times Schools Guide)

[mystery]

My guess is that the answer to the 65% pass 11plus school is both some hard work at the school and some extra tutoring / parental effort going on. It sounds very like a primary school in West Kent that always has high percentage of level 5s (not as good as Grinling Gibbons though) and high 11 plus pass rate including one of the highest percentages of high scorers for the superselectives. But it has a much "easier" intake than Grinling Gibbons. Sounds like Grinling Gibbons would put some of these other more privileged primaries to shame.

[southbucks3]

It's based on % achievement of level 5 in reading, writing, maths and spag.

The results are combined to give the rank order.

The 'writing' sats results are extremely poor in comparison to the other three!

[mystery]

Oh I wish I could read the list. That sounds a useful way of doing it - it would be useful of course to see added value too ......but I'm not sure how much that means now that the same papers get used again and again and again at KS1.

[drummer]

What does the reference to Newton Farm mean?

[Guest55]

mystery - KS1 levels should not just be based on tests and 25% of schools are moderated every year.

Progress is more important than levels .. these tables are 18 months out of date! The DfE tables show level 5+ and also show progress.

[southbucks3]

The tables are useless imo.
How can a school that only achieved 24% of pupils at level 5 writing be classed as higher achieving than one that achieved 63% of children writing at level 5.
By averaging the scores it can hide problem areas, not that a level four indicates a problem, but maybe rather than pushing the children towards 100% level 5 achievement in maths, the school could have spent more time expanding their writing skills.

[mystery]

Yes, the DfE tables are better in a lot of ways (but of course not perfect) but also they don't permit you to look at anything year on year anymore and you can't pick a selection of schools on any particular basis. I would never have know that there was a primary school with 2013 level 5s as high as Grinling Gibbons had without the post on here having been made. It's life-changing. Pretty good for a wood-carver.

[Hyacinth]

Another state primary in wycombe area had <5/30 pass the 11+ in 2013 but is in the top 600 for sats in that same year group.

Well, imagine my surprise.....

[ToadMum]

What does the reference to Newton Farm mean?

I had to look that one up as well. Newton Farm is a primary in South Harrow which apparently was getting amazing KS2 SATS results - until the 2013 results were apparently annulled due to cheating.

Interestingly, although Newton Farm has a c.70 per cent English not as first language level - it is about a third less at Grinling Gibbons - their percentage eligible for FSM in the past 6 years is less than a seventh of that at the Deptford school.

I can't help wondering whether the local secondary schools in the area didn't wonder why the ex-Newton Farm DC's baseline abilities in year 7 didn't necessarily match up to their apparent abilities at the end of year 6, though?

I admit that I haven't yet read the Telegraph piece linked to from a certain other website, so apologies for appearing even more ignorant of the subject if this is how it came to light .

[fifilarue]

Here is an interview with the GG head teacher:
http://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/lon ... 72129.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;