SECONDARY school performance in Bury remains better than average, despite continued underfunding by the Government.

The borough is ranked 57th out of 150 in England, a drop of two places since last year, and is second in Greater Manchester, based on exam pass rates at C grade or above.

In Bury, 53.9 per cent of pupils gained five A to C grades - just over the national average of 53.7.

Tables for Bury and Bolton

However, the borough is six per cent above the national average when pupils leaving with more than five A to G grades are counted, with a success rate of 94.8 per cent, a rise of six per cent.

The results also indicate successes in tackling truancy. Last year, 0.7 per cent of half-day absences were unauthorised, compared with 0.5 per cent this year. The national average is 1.2 per cent.

Top place went to Manchester Jewish Grammar, where 100 per cent of pupils gained at least five higher grades. The establishment became voluntary-aided in November and is now known as Manchester Mesivta High.

Headteacher Mr Phaivish Pink said: "We are delighted to now be a part of the family of schools in Bury and we are very thankful for the support we have received from the local education authority.

"The way for pupils to get good grades is to work and revise hard, to have teachers that teach well, and to have a little luck."

In Bury itself, Bury CE High showed the best average total point score in the state sector. Headteacher Phil Grady said: "The quality of our teaching is consistently high.This is a tribute to the efforts of the bulk of the year group."

St Monica's emerged as top state school in the five A to C category, with a pass rate of 78 per cent. The Bury Old Road school also had the mainstream state sectors highest value-added score, a measure of improvements between ages 14 and 16.

Head teacher Frank McCarron said: "We are pleased but were not going to be content until we have 100 per cent of pupils achieving five A to Cs. The staff and kids continue to put in an extraordinary amount of hours to achieve these results."

The highest overall value-added score belonged to Elms Bank Community High Special School.

At the newly formed Radcliffe Riverside, created in a merger between Coney Green and Radcliffe High, there was frustration when results for hundreds of pupils were omitted. A mix-up meant that results for Coney Green were not included. Instead, the Department for Education and Skills (DFES) gave all details for Radcliffe High under the new name Radcliffe Riverside. Following complaints, officials agreed to withdraw the flawed figures from the tables.

Headteacher Diana Morton said: "They are not a true reflection of results published across both schools. While we are pleased with the results for Radcliffe High, we would expect the figure to be much higher if the results for Coney Green had been included."

Some 98.3 per cent of all pupils in the borough left school with a useful qualification. Mr Harold Williams, Bury Council's director of education and culture, said: "The performance across all ability ranges is really pleasing."

He said despite improvements the borough was receiving less than its fair share nationally.