HIGH Street Primary School has been named top of the league tables in Winsford after scoring a total of 262 per cent in the Key Stage 2 tests in English, maths and science.

And Wimboldsley Primary School, which topped the tables in Middlewich, followed hot on their heels scoring a total of 253 per cent.

The results have been welcomed by education committee chairman, Cty Clr Peter Nurse, who said were very "heartening" and set the county in the right direction towards reaching targets for the year 2002 of 85 per cent in English and 80 per cent in mathematics.

The National Curriculum Tests are a summary of pupils' achievements in the three core subjects at the end of Key Stage 2.

But Cty Clr Nurse also warned of the dangers of concentrating only on a narrow set of results.

He said: "When parents look at schools, it is necessary to look at more than just performance in these three basic subject areas.

"It is far more important for parents to visit a school, see the children at work, talk to the members of staff, and make a balanced judgement about how suitable the school is for your child."

Ian Percival, headteacher of Whitegate Primary School, issued a statement on behalf of primary schools in Winsford about the league tables.

He said: "Winsford primary headteachers are once again pleased with their children's achievements in the 1998 Key Stage 2 assessments. Much hard work goes on throughout the school year and we would like to thank both teaching staff and parents for their support and efforts.

"The National Curriculum tests and Teacher Assessments are a summary of children's achievements in three core subjects - English, maths and science. They provide a "snapshot" of how children performed on the day of the test and only test a limited range of each subject.

"Performance tables still do not take into account a number of key issues which may effect individual school results, for example whether a school provides for children with special education needs."

He added: "Parents should carefully examine a wider range of information about schools, rather than just using information from the performance tables to base judgements on how well a school is doing."

The tables contain details of the percentage of pupils who reached level four standard or above in Standard Assessment Tests (SATs). Level four is the standard an average 11-year-old would be expected to meet.

Cledford Junior School: English 65%, maths 58%, science 70%; Darnhall County Primary School: English 74%, maths 58%, science 82%; Grange Primary School: English 60%, maths 70%, science 70%; Greenfields Primary School: English 66%, maths 49%, science 63%; Handley Hill Primary School: English 26%, maths 29%, science 32%; High Street Primary School: English 79%, maths 90%, science 93%; Kelsall County Primary: English 78%, maths 81%, science 84%; Middlewich County Junior School: English 81%, maths 71%, science 88%; Moulton County Primary School: English 62%, maths 65%, science 85%; Over Hall Primary School: English 63%, maths 42%, science 46%; Over St John's Primary: English 57%, maths 64%, science 64%; St Chad's Primary School: English 77%, maths 77%, science 87%; St Joseph's Primary School: English 59%, maths 61%, science 64%; St Mary's RC Primary School: English 86%, maths 68%, science 82%; Tarporley Primary School: English 91%, maths 82%, science 85%; Wharton Junior School: English 64%, maths 57%, science 64%; Wimboldsley Primary: English 80%, maths 73%, science 100%.

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