A HEADTEACHER has claimed complete tables published next year will give a better indication of progress.

Maldon’s Plume Academy achieved a Progress 8 score of -0.28, compared with last year’s score of 0.08.

This is ranked as below average.

It suggests pupils start at the school expected to reach a certain level in their GCSEs but their actual GCSE scores are slightly lower than predicted.

The school was also given a 41.8 Attainment 8 score.

Headteacher Carl Wakefield said: “We were extremely proud of a significant number of Year 11 students from last year who did exceptionally well and exceeded our expectations.

“As well as those who achieved well on more traditional pathways and in terms of the previous headline measures, a large cohort of these were students engaged in our flexible learning programme who took courses and followed a curriculum that ultimately, did not contribute towards the overall Progress 8 measure for 2016-17.

“However, the fact virtually every single one of these students secured outcomes that allowed them to progress on to the next stage of their education, onto apprenticeships or into employment was something that we, as an academy, were exceptionally proud of.”

William de Ferrers School achieved -0.05 Progress 8 score and a 45.9 Attainment 8 score.

Thurstable School in Tiptree recorded a -0.1 Progress 8 score and a 44.5 Attainment 8 score.

Both grades are classed as average. Miles Bacon, headteacher at Thurstable School, said: “We welcome the publication of the provisional school per-formance tables.

"These allow parents with children in Year Six to have early information on the 2017 exam results; giving time to consider them before minds have to be made up at the end of October on their choice of secondary school.

"It is important to remember, though, the performance figures released in October are provisional.

“At Thurstable, for example, almost all students taking art were moved up a grade in a moderation review last week, and of the remarks we have requested so far in English around a third have been moved up by one or more grades.

"None of this is included in these provisional performance tables, but will be in the final figures.”