AN INNER-CITY Bradford school has been ranked among the top 10 in England for how well its pupils progress.

New GCSE result tables show that Dixons Trinity Academy is eighth nationally when it comes to the Progress 8 result - which looks at the improvement a pupil makes from the end of primary school to the end of secondary school.

This summer’s results mark the first time pupils at the school, located off Little Horton Lane, had sat GCSE exams.

Another Bradford school features in the top 30 as Feversham College, an Islamic girls school in Undercliffe, came in at 28th.

Overall, Bradford is the joint fourth most improved local education authority area in the country for the measure, which was introduced last year.

In a table measuring the progress pupils have made across eight subjects, Bradford is ranked 56th out of 151 local education authority areas, up from 118th position in 2016.

But due to changes to how GCSEs are graded, it is impossible to compare the more traditional A-C results with last year.

After Dixons Trinity and Feversham, the next best performing schools in Bradford in Progress 8 are Dixons Kings Academy in Lidget Green, followed by Carlton Bolling in Undercliffe and Dixons City Academy.

In 2014, Dixons Trinity became the first secondary free school to be judged outstanding by Ofsted.

Principal Luke Sparkes said: “Five years ago we asked a group of families to put faith in us and our mission. We said that, if they did, we believed we could deliver some of the best results in the country. Our Progress 8 score has honoured that promise for our first set of families and is a key milestone both for the school and for our mission.

“Our results are a testament to the commitment the students, their families and the whole community have shared.”

A Feversham College spokesman said: “We are extremely proud of the class of 2017 who achieved outstanding GCSE results in a year of significant change and ‘tougher exams’. These incredible outcomes are a result of the continued hard work and dedication of pupils, staff, parents and Governors.”

Coun Imran Khan, Bradford Council ‘s executive member for education, employment and skills said: “There is some great news for Bradford in these latest results. Our district’s schools have achieved one of the biggest improvements in the progress being made by secondary school pupils in the country, compared with our results last year.

“We are seeing improvements at all age groups from primary school to post 16 which give us confidence that we are on the right path. However we know that the overall attainment of pupils in our district still lags behind the national average. We are determined to build on the progress we have seen this year to ensure that Bradford closes the gap.”

Michael Jameson, Bradford Council’s Strategic Director for Children’s services said: “The improving results we are seeing across the board in Bradford schools are down to the hard work and commitment of our young people and the dedicated staff in our schools. We have outstanding teachers and leaders and some of the best provision nationally which is all contributing to renewed confidence and a self belief in Bradford.

“We want all young people in our district to be able to access the best possible education at every stage of their development and these latest provisional results for key stage four and five show we are heading in the right direction."