BURY'S schools have been ranked in the country's top 30 and are the second best in the whole of Greater Manchester.

The GCSE performance league tables released this week show that an average of 56.3 per cent of pupils sitting exams in Bury's 18 secondary schools last summer achieved five or more A*-C grades.

This is a record for the borough and is also significantly above the national average of 51.5 per cent. It means Bury is ranked 28 out out of 147 LEAs nationwide.

Bury's executive member for lifelong learning, Coun Steve Perkins, said: "I'm very pleased about the figures. It is amazing what our schools have done when you consider how poorly funded Bury is as an authority. I congratulate the commitment of pupils, staff, parents and governors."

Topping the table of local state schools for the third year in succession is St Monica's RC High School in Prestwich with a score of 71 per cent.

Headteacher Frank McCarron described it as a "phenomenal" result, made all the more remarkable by the fact that only 43 per cent of the pupils got five or more GCSE A*-C grades in the mock exam six months earlier.

Mr McCarron said: "The 5 o' clock after-school study club, which was held every week day and was attended by around 60 GCSE pupils, certainly helped. We also had 36 staff holding revision lessons and high expectations by teachers and by the pupils of themselves."

The most improved school is Ramsbottom's Woodhey High School, with an increase of 12 per cent on 2001's result of 56 per cent.

Proud head teacher Mr Martin Braidley said: "This is the highest percentage the school has ever achieved and is a direct result of good teaching and support from a highly dedicated staff, superb support from parents and guardians and a group of well-motivated pupils who were determined to do well.

"We are equally proud of our youngsters with special education needs who performed well in excess of their expected grades in some cases."

But Mr Braidley added: "League tables are only one measure of a school's performance and do not illustrate many other activities going on in a school."

Radcliffe High School is the poorest performing school in the local league tables for the second year running.

Only 18 per cent of pupils at the Abden Street school achieved five or more A*-C grades in the GCSE examinations last summer. This is even worse than last year when Radcliffe High School got 21 per cent.

Head teacher Graham Rollinson said: "We are pleased to see that we have achieved better results than those predicted based upon pupil ability and predictive tests. Whilst we recognise that to some people they may appear disappointing, and we ourselves are aiming for much better performance, nevertheless we can see clear progress towards improving results in the future."

He added: "Radcliffe High School prides itself in being an inclusive school and whilst the Government and the LEA continue to direct us to admit pupils even into Year 11, many of whom have learning difficulties, and some of whom have arrived recently from other countries, often with little or no understanding of English, then these results should come as no surprise to anyone."

Commenting on Bury's performance, Bury South MP Ivan Lewis said: "Yet again, all those involved in providing education in Bury can be extremely proud of the young people's achievements.

"We are fortunate to be blessed with one of the best performing education systems in the country."