Cheshire East schools, including four in Middlewich, are the third best in England, according to a ranking based on performance in Ofsted inspections.


Out of 141 primary and secondary schools in the borough which have been inspected under the education watchdog’s 2012 framework, 93.6 percent were rated good or outstanding, with Middlewich High, Middlewich Primary, St Mary’s Catholic Primary, and Cledford Primary all receiving Good reports.


The only local authorities ranked higher in the whole of England were the City of London, where Ofsted inspected just one school, and the London Borough of Wandsworth, where 65 schools were rated.


One of the Middlewich schools, Cledford Primary, had a main part to play in the improvement of Cheshire East’s school figures, having been ranked in the top 100 most improved schools in the country.


Jane Booth, head teacher at Cledford Primary School, said: “Cledford staff, governors, parents and pupils are proud to have played their part in Cheshire East’s success, taking the school from ‘satisfactory’ in 2012 to good and outstanding last year.


“Pupil’s attainment and progress in 2014 put the school in the top 100 most improved schools in the country and the story of their success will appear in this year’s ‘Parliamentary Review’ of schools. Pupils at Cledford performed better than other pupils nationally in all subjects last year.”


Trafford, which was ranked seventh, was the only other north west local authority to feature in the top ten.


The nationwide ranking was drawn up by Watchsted, a data service which tracks the results from all Ofsted inspections.


Council Leader, Cllr Michael Jones, said: “To be rated as the third best area in the country for schools is proof of the great work the officers have done and there is more to come.


“It shows that this council is putting residents first and creating greater opportunities for our young people to lead rewarding lives.”


Cheshire East’s Cabinet member for safeguarding children and adults, Cllr Rachel Bailey, thanked the schools, teachers and pupils for their efforts in making the borough one of the best for education.


Cllr Bailey said: “To have 93.6 per cent of our schools rated good or outstanding is a fantastic achievement.


“I would like to thank the schools, teachers, governors, council officers and, of course, the pupils, for all their hard work.”