PRIMARY schools in Swindon are to receive almost a million pounds in funding next year.

Swindon has been allocated £831,620 out of a £19,752,176 pot for the South West.

The money will go towards boosting literacy and numeracy and was announced today as Schools Minister Catherine Ashton set out next year's allocations for each local education authority.

She said: "This means more investment in our drive to raise standards in primary schools in the South West.

"We've achieved a great deal. We know there's more we can do together. Teachers have worked extremely hard to deliver the improvements that have been made."

Strategies to improve literacy and numeracy include:

n Booster classes for 10 and 11- year-olds who need additional support to reach their full potential.

n Continued training for teachers in priority areas of writing, phonics and spelling.

n Additional training for literacy and maths co-ordinators within schools.

Regionally, Swindon's allocation compares to the £1,938,595 allocated to the rest of Wiltshire and £2,279,447 for Gloucestershire.

Swindon's education authority came under fire in the summer's Ofsted report, which found the authority was failing in its duty to spend education money wisely in the area.

However, criticism has also been directed towards the Government because of a lack of funding for Swindon schools which means that pupils in this area receive less money per head than on average nationwide.

Today's announcement also comes before the publication of annual primary school performance tables on Wednesday which are expected to confirm a halt in the the rise in standards recorded over the last few years nationally.

Andrew Nye, headteacher of Seven Fields Primary in Penhill and chairman of the Primary Headteacher's Association, said: "We do welcome funding coming directly to schools to help us continue the great progress that children are making year by year in Swindon's primary schools.

"The money enables good, skilled and targeted teaching to be backed up by excellent, trained, teaching assistants. Improving standards in schools is not all about money, as Swindon's primary schools have proved by getting improving results while being very poorly funded. It is about dedicated and highly skilled and motivated teachers and assistants working effectively day in and day out with the children.

"However, given that Swindon's funding is so poor, we are hampered by lack of money to employ all the staff the children deserve.

"We are all now looking to the Government to sort out it's funding which leaves every primary child in Swindon £180 per year short of the average."

Two weeks ago the Evening Advertiser demanded explanations for the present crisis from Education Secretary Estelle Morris in an open letter on the front page. Although she promised us an interview last week, nothing has yet materialised.