Merton schools are the best performing schools in the country for progress towards GCSE, figures show.

The local authority ranked in joint-first place at the top of a table of 172 councils in the country for Progress 8 scores.

The scores, published by the Department for Education, show how much progress pupils make between the end of Key Stage 2 (primary school) and Key Stage 4 (secondary school).

Merton Council leader Cllr Stephen Alambritis said: “Choosing a secondary school for your child is one of the most important decisions a parent will make. As the deadline for applications approaches, it’s reassuring to know secondary schools in Merton are offering an excellent education for pupils who will be starting next September.

“Indeed, new figures measuring the progress made by pupils from the moment they enter secondary school until they take their GCSEs, show the Merton has the best performing state schools in the whole country, outperforming all other boroughs, whether they have grammar schools, comprehensives or any kind of system.”

When calculating a school's Progress 8 scores, results in eight qualifications are considered, including English, maths, sciences, computer science, history, geography and languages.

Schools are then given a score either above or below zero - with scores above zero meaning pupils made more progress, on average, than pupils across England who got similar results at the end of key stage 2. Being scored below zero means there is less progress on average.

Merton schools collectively scored a Progress 8 score of 0.51 - making the borough joint-top in the country along with Brent.

Cllr Alambritis added: “What’s more, all Merton’s state secondary schools have been ranked good or outstanding by the independent schools inspectors at Ofsted.

“Merton is a great place for families and we have focussed on raising standards in all our schools, while building new classrooms and planning a brand new secondary in South Wimbledon, so all Merton’s children can enjoy going to brilliant local schools.”

For more information visit www.gov.uk/government/publications/progress-8-school-performance-measure