A PRIMARY school near Basingstoke has recorded some of the best results in the country in national tests for 11-year-olds.

Sherborne St John Church of England Primary School gained the highest aggregate SATs score possible of 300, which relates to the number of pupils achieving the required level in the English, maths and science exams taken in May.

A total of 100 per cent of pupils achieved level four in the exams, which are Key Stage Two Standard Assessment Tests (SATs).

They were one of just 282 schools across the country that ensured every child met the standard expected for their age in English, maths and science.

Head teacher Karen Payne said: “One of our main aims is to value each child as an individual and encourage them to reach their full potential. I think we have really achieved that this year. We are extremely pleased with our results and we are proud of the children.”

Nationally, the SATs tables published last week showed an increase in the number of primary schools giving children a sub-standard education.

But they also showed that more than 60 per cent of 47 schools in The Gazette area had a higher number of pupils achieving level 5 in maths, English and science than the national average, which indicates they are working above what is expected for their age.

Nationally, 29 per cent of pupils achieved level 5 or above in English, 35 per cent in maths and 43 per cent in science.

Seventy nine per cent of schools in The Gazette area also had a higher number of pupils than the national average gaining level 4 in English – the standard expected for their age.

In maths, 71 per cent of the schools had a higher than national average number gaining level four, and in science, it was 81 per cent.

St Anne’s Catholic Primary School in Pinkerton Road, South Ham, Basingstoke, achieved the best results out of all the Catholic schools in Hampshire with an aggregate score of 294.

Head teacher Jacqueline Alexander, who started at the school in April, said: “It’s the second year in a row where we have performed really well. We are really excited but we do have high standards.”

South View Junior school on Shooters Way, Basingstoke, had the worst aggregate score for English, maths and science in The Gazette area, although it has shown a steady improvement over the last three years, going up from an aggregate score of 177 in 2006 to 203 this year.

Head teacher Sheila Pape said the tables are only a snapshot. She added: “All our teachers work incredibly hard and why should they be judged on one day’s performance of the children? We had a good Ofsted report because inspectors realised how much progress these children are making.

“We are delighted with our science results and we were pleased with the level 5 achievement. It was only our writing result that we were disappointed with. But it’s also about the value-added element and ours went up again compared with last year.”

The Contextual Value Added (CVA) score compares how well children did at Key Stage Two with their results at Key Stage One when they were seven years old.

The idea is to measure how much the school has improved, since some schools have many more children with problems. It takes into account factors such as gender, Special Educational Needs (SEN) and family circumstances.

Ninety per cent of pupils at South View, which has a high number of children with SEN, gained level 4 in Science, 24 per cent of whom achieved a level 5. It was only the English results which bought their aggregate score down with just 47 per cent of pupils gaining level 4.