Primary schools in Basildon are finally beating off their bad reputation - and steadily climbing up the league tables.

Staff and pupils around the town were yesterday celebrating the news their results are rising along with both county and national trends.

Although many of the town's schools are still floundering at the bottom end of the tables, just two have dropped on last year's results.

The Dfee website has all the new school league tables online. To visit it, click one of the links below:

Homepage

Performance tables

For a comprehensive round-up on the performance of South Essex primary schools see the story 'South Essex: Schools are on the up' in Newsround Bluehouse Junior School, in Leinster Road, Laindon, has dropped six points on last year - from 129 to 123.

The town's least successful school - which is also the worst in south Essex - is Laindon Park Primary School, in Church Hill, Basildon.

It scored just 79 in this year's league table - 12 down on last year.

Headteacher Christine Garland said: "This was a one-off year. Of the 14 pupils ten had special educational needs, many of whom joined the school halfway through the year. I am pleased those pupils who have been with the school from reception did very well.

"I am disappointed these results do not reflect the good work of the school."

The town's highest scoring primary school was Kingswood Junior School, in Clay Hill Road, Basildon.

Of the 241 youngsters at the school, 85 per cent reached the expected rate for their age in English, 93 per cent in maths and 97 per cent in science.

Staff and pupils at Millhouse Junior School, in Tavistock Road, Laindon, were today celebrating for the second time in a week.

This Is Essex featured the school yesterday after it was awarded an outstanding Ofsted report.

It has now appeared as the most improved school in Basildon - with a jump in results from 157 last year to 259 in 1999.

Headteacher Jude Passman said: "This is a great accolade to everybody involved in the school. It is nice to know what we are doing in the school is having an affect on childrens' level of work. That is the really good thing about it.

"We shall just keep on working hard!"

Vange Primary School, in London Road, Vange, has dragged itself up from the bottom of the table.

Just after the 1998 table was published the school was taken off the special measures list and has been striving ahead ever since.

The school managed to jump from a score of just 33 last year to 91 - a leap of 58.

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.