SEFTON schools’ results have shown another year of increases, keeping them among the best in Merseyside.

Students gaining five good A*-C grades has risen by 6.2% to 77.4%, the joint top score alongside schools in Warrington.

But, when English and maths are taken into account, the authority falls short of Warrington’s top 59.8%, recording 53.2%.

However, the results still show yet another improvement on last year’s figures of 51.4%.

The statistics are skewed by the 0% figures, included from one of the borough’s best-performing schools, Merchant Taylors’ Boys’ School, Crosby. Headteacher David Cook said: “The Qualification and Curriculum Authority do not recognise the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCE) maths examination, despite it being one of the most rigorous exams accepted by the likes of Oxford and Cambridge.

“In the IGCE exam, 80% of our students got an A or A*, so it’s a shame these excellent results aren’t recognised.”

Merchant Taylors’ Girls’ School was the best performing, with 91% of girls getting five or more A*-C grades, including English and maths, despite this dropping from 97% in 2008.

Sefton’s Litherland High School is the most improved, with 21% more students achieving five A*-C grades, including English and maths.

The school attributed the improvement to concentrating resources on the key subjects of maths and English to boost overall results for students.

Sefton Council cabinet member for Children’s Services, Peter Dowd, said: “I’m delighted once again that the young people of Sefton have managed to continue to improve their attainment levels across the borough.”

For a full Sefton league table - click here