How to read the tables

This section explains how to read the information in the tables.

School Particulars

The tables give the following details for each school:

• address and telephone number;
• whether the school has a Charter Mark (if so, the symbol will be shown);
• what type of school it is (community, voluntary controlled, voluntary aided, foundation, community special or foundation special); and
• the main age range of the pupils in the school.

Background information

These columns provide further information about the school that you might find useful. They show:

• the total number of pupils of all ages (including those in any nursery classes) on the school register on 17 January 2002;
• the number of pupils at the school who reached the age of 11 during the school year. This number should normally be the same or nearly the same as the number of eligible pupils. If there is a big difference you may want to ask the school's head teacher for further information;
• the total number and percentage of pupils of all ages in mainstream schools with statements of special educational needs (SEN). These statements describe any learning difficulties that pupils have, and specify the extra help or equipment, that they need. Around 3% of school pupils (both special and mainstream) nationally have statements;
• the total number and percentage of pupils of all ages in mainstream schools with special educational needs, but without statements. These are other pupils registered as having special educational needs but whose schools meet the pupils' needs without a statement. These may include pupils on School/Early Years Action or School/Early Years Action Plus.

Some pupils with special educational needs are academically able. But schools face challenges in achieving Level 4 at Key Stage 2 for many pupils with SEN. However, some pupils with SEN will not be able to achieve Level 4 at KS2. The information on the numbers of pupils with SEN in each school helps you take this into account when looking at a school's results. These columns will be blank for special schools because all pupils in special schools have statements of SEN.

Performance Information (Key Stage 2 Test Results)

This part of the tables shows the Key Stage 2 test results for each school.

Which pupils are included?

The information is based on all pupils in each school that were eligible for Key Stage 2 assessment in the 2001/2002 school year.

All pupils - including those with special educational needs - are eligible for assessment under the National Curriculum when they reach the end of Key Stage 2. Most will be aged 11 by the end of the school year. But some will be younger or older. All eligible pupils are included in the tables regardless of whether or not they sat the test (for example because a pupil was absent or disapplied).

The results for some schools have been adjusted in respect of pupils who have recently arrived from overseas with little or no English. The Government accepts that these pupils will not do their best in the tests until they have improved their English language skills and are more familiar with the school curriculum in this country.

Pupils have been disregarded from the figures where: the pupil was admitted to the school for the first time on or after the start of the 2000/2001 school year; they arrived from overseas prior to their admission; and their first language is not English.

Test Results

The columns show:

• the number of eligible pupils on the school roll at the time of the tests in May 2002.
• the number and percentage of those eligible pupils with special educational needs (SEN) both with or without statements. Some of these pupils may not have taken the tests - because they were working at a level below that assessed by the tests (level 3), or because they were disapplied. This will affect the school's overall results. (These columns will be blank for special schools where all pupils have statements of SEN.)
• the percentage of eligible pupils who achieved Level 4 or above in the English, mathematics and science tests. Level 4 is the level of achievement expected of pupils at the end of Key Stage 2. It is not an average in the sense that half the pupils should be above Level 4 and half should be below it.
• the percentage of eligible pupils absent or disapplied from the English, mathematics and science tests. These percentages are shown to help you take this into account when comparing a school's results to those of other schools in the area. A school's results may have been affected by the pupils who were absent or disapplied from the tests.
• The average point score for each school is calculated by allocating points to each pupil's Key Stage 2 results in each test (using the equivalences below) then dividing that total by the number of eligible pupils in each subject. This means that the average achievement of pupils in a school is shown as a number that can be interpreted using the table below. For example, a score of 30 would mean that, on average, pupils achieved more than level 4 but less than level 5. For a school with 100% pupils achieving level 4 or above in all three subjects a score of 30 would tell you that a proportion of pupils have achieved level 5 or above in some or all of the tests.
  
  

  Key Stage Test Level	Point score equivalent
  Disapplied	Disregarded from calculation
  Absent	Disregarded from calculation
  B (Working below the level of the test)	15
  N (Not awarded a test level)	15
  2	15
  3	21
  4	27
  5	33
  6	39

Improvement Measure

The tables also show how the achievements of pupils in each mainstream school have changed over the past four years. (Because 2002 is the second year that the results of pupils in special schools have been published, there is no historic data available for special schools.) The bar charts show the sum of the three percentages of pupils achieving Level 4 or above in the English, mathematics and science tests in each of the years 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002.

Absence record for pupils of compulsory school age

These columns show the levels of authorised and unauthorised absence for day pupils of compulsory school age (5-16) on roll for at least one session during the 2001/2002 school year up to and including Friday 24 May 2002.

Authorised absence is absence with permission from a teacher or other authorised representative of the school. This includes absences for which a satisfactory explanation has been provided (e.g. illness).

Unauthorised absence is absence without permission from a teacher or other authorised representative of the school. This includes all unexplained or unjustified absences.

The first column shows the number of day pupils of compulsory school age. The second and third columns show the percentage of total sessions (half days) lost through:

• authorised absence; and
• unauthorised absence.

If we have not received complete information from a school, X is shown in the relevant columns. Where an absence return is not required (boarding schools and new schools which opened after the start of the 2001/2002 academic year) the symbol # is shown.

Symbols

In some places one of the following symbols may be shown instead of results:

< means that the school had 10 or fewer eligible pupils on roll at the time of the 2002 tests. No results or data on eligible pupils with SEN are shown for these schools, because of the risk of individual pupils' results being identified.

< can also mean the school has 10 or fewer day pupils of compulsory school age on roll and, therefore, no absence data is shown.

+ means that the results are not available for reasons beyond the school's control.

X means that the school failed to provide the information.

NA means that the improvement measure is not appropriate for publication, or that no results were published for the year in question.

# An absence return is not required (boarding schools and new schools which opened after the start of the 2001/2002 academic year).

Local and national averages

The top of each LEA page shows:

• the average figures for all state schools (including special schools) in each local education authority area; and
• the average figures for all schools (including independent schools) in England.

You may wish to compare the results of individual schools with these local and national averages.

How the tables were compiled

School details, test results and background information were checked with or provided by schools during September 2002.

If a school did not confirm that it had checked the test results and/or background information, the letter R or B (or both) appears after the age range.