Several primary schools in County Durham, Tyneside and Teesside have been named among the best in the country in the Sunday Times' latest top 500 for 2024.

The Parent Power table has ranked schools on their average performance using results from summer 2023.

Among the names, St Charles' RC Primary School, Gosforth ranks the best in all of the North East regions and also came 31st in the whole of the UK. 

Elsewhere, Newcomen Primary School, Redcar, ranks second in the North East, while Staindrop Church of England Primary School in Darlington came in third.

Further down the list, there's room in the 24 list for Stanley Crook Primary School, St Oswald's CofE VA Primary and Nursery School, Dean Bank Primary and Nursery School, St Margaret's CofE Primary School, and Montalbo Nursery and Primary School; all in County Durham.

The list is purely for the North East, with The Times ranking other schools in different regions of the UK in their own category. 

The rankings are just for state schools, but there is a separate list for independent schools too.

The Sunday Times said its latest data showed that across the country combined reading, writing and maths levels are still lower than they were before Covid.

In the most recent tests last May, 59 per cent of pupils reached the expected level in English, grammar and maths combined, compared with 65 per cent in 2019.

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Since Covid, teachers have had to tackle falling attendance, a mental health crisis, overweight and screen-addicted children, the Times has reported.

One of the biggest challenges has been persuading children to attend.

About 1.8 million children are regularly missing school, which means they’re absent for at least one afternoon or morning a week, the newspaper said.

Here are the rankings below: 

  1. St Charles' RC Primary School, Gosforth – 31 in the UK
  2. Newcomen Primary School, Redcar – 41 in the UK
  3. Staindrop CofE Primary School, Darlington – 46 in the UK
  4. Egglescliffe CofE Primary School, Stockton – joint 85 in the UK
  5. Captain Cook Primary School, Middlesbrough – 116 in the UK
  6. St Joseph's RC Primary School, Sunderland – joint 121 in the UK
  7. Bailey Green Primary School, North Tyneside – 141 in the UK
  8. Badger Hill Academy, Teesside – joint 165 in the UK
  9. Lockwood Primary School, Teesside – joint 165 in the UK        
  10. Stanley Crook Primary School, County Durham – 173 in the UK
  11. West Jesmond Primary School, Newcastle – 182 in the UK
  12. Bernard Gilpin Primary School, Sunderland – joint 186 in the UK
  13. Kingston Park Primary School, Newcastle – joint 299 in the UK
  14. Throckley Primary School, Newcastle – joint 310 in the UK
  15. Tyneview Primary School, Newcastle – joint 316 in the UK
  16. Whickham Parochial CofE Primary School, Gateshead - joint 316 in the UK
  17. St Oswald's CofE VA Primary and Nursery School, County Durham – 347 in the UK
  18. Montalbo Nursery and Primary School, County Durham – 348 in the UK             
  19. East Boldon Junior School, South Tyneside – joint 365 in the UK
  20. Biddick Hall Junior School, South Tyneside - 403 in the UK
  21. Dean Bank Primary and Nursery School, County Durham - joint 452 in the UK 
  22. Durham Lane Primary School, Stockton – joint 452 in the UK  
  23. Kibblesworth Academy, Gateshead – joint 452 in the UK
  24. St Margaret's CofE Primary School, Crossgate Peth – joint 493 in the UK