PRIMARY school pupils in Worcestershire have shown little or no improvement in English, maths and science since last year, the latest set of league tables reveal.

Overall, the percentage of county pupils who achieved level 4 and above in their Key Stage 2 Sats tests compared with last year has either fallen or stayed the same.

In 2006, the percentage of Worcestershire pupils getting level 4 and above in English was 81 per cent. But that has fallen to 80 per cent this year. The maths score has stayed the same at 75 per cent, and the science results have also dropped from 89 per cent last year to 88 per cent this year.

The national pass rates this year were 80 per cent for English, 77 per cent for maths, and 88 per cent for science.

Belbroughton CE Primary School was number one in Worcestershire, according to an aggregation of the percentages, with 100 per cent of pupils achieving level 4 and above in each of the three subjects.

However, Malvern Wyche CE Primary School had the highest average point score in the county for the Sats tests with 31.6, compared to the county average of 27.8 and the national average of 27.9.

The school also had the highest contextual value-added score, which measures the progress made by pupils from the end of Key Stage 1 to the end of Key Stage 2 using their test and exam results. It also takes into account the varying starting points of each pupil's KS1 test results, and also adjusts for factors which are outside a school's control (such as gender, mobility and levels of deprivation) that have been observed to impact on pupil results.

Malvern Wyche scored 102.1, compared to a county average of 99.7.

In Worcester, Cherry Orchard Primary School topped the average point table with 30.4.

Headteacher Jeremy Harwood said: "The league tables are very controversial and not necessarily the best way of assessing how well a school and its pupils are achieving.

"That said, we are delighted that those pupils who took their Sats earlier this year have achieved such good results. The children made incredible efforts and were enjoyable to teach and they must take all the credit."

Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Primary School in Worcester scored the highest contextual value-added score in the city, with 101.4.

The worst performing in the city was St Clement's Primary School, with the lowest average point score in the city, at 24.8, and the lowest value-added score, 98.1.

Headteacher Kate Brunt said: "We are disappointed by our dramatic drop. The school has gone through a number of difficulties over the last few years. But we have now put into place a number of processes to support accelerated pupil progress and I'm confident we will see standards rise."

Councillor Liz Eyre, Worcestershire County Council's cabinet member for children and young people, said "Our Key Stage 2 results are roughly in line with historic results, although there has been a slight slippage in maths.

However, when we put this in the context of the huge Wyre Forest Review, these results stand up as quite good. A major part of the children and young people's plan that we're looking to deliver with our partners is to focus on maths, and I do believe that a greater understanding of the new primary numeracy strategy will help us achieve this.

"Any successes on the ground are down to a joint effort and are testament to the hard work of staff, parents, governors and pupils."

l None of Worcestershire's schools made it into the two national top 100 lists this year - last year, there were four in the lists, which reveal the top 100 schools with most sustained improvement, and the top 100 based on the contextual value-added score.

Marlbrook Primary School in Herefordshire was the only two counties school to make it into both lists this year.