SWINDON'S primary school heads have welcomed the improvement in the town's figures.

Colin Green, chairman of their association, said: "We are closing the gap. I think that is the key and it is to be celebrated.

"I think the hard work of the council in terms of getting extra resources to schools was significant and, of course, we have had additional funding from the Government. Resources do make a huge difference.

"But it would be interesting to see whether Swindon, as an education authority, has narrowed the gap in terms of funding per pupil compared to other authorities."

Mr Green also emphasised the point made by many heads that the ability of the year group can make a real difference to the results of a particular school, as can the numbers of children with special needs.

Speaking of his own school, Covingham Park Junior, which dipped 14 percentage points he said: "I was pleased with the number of children who achieved level 5 in English, and we had our first level six in maths and one child missed it by just one mark.

"But last year more than a third of our children sitting the tests had special educational needs, and while I was pleased with their progress this did make a significant difference to our results."

League tables for Swindon, Wiltshire and Gloucester appear in the Evening Advertiser, edition Thursday, December 7.