BOLTON'S first Ofsted report is published today. Education Reporter JANET HUGHES examines the report's findings for the town.

MAKING sure schools work together with other bodies to raise standards is one of the main strengths of Bolton's Local Education Authority.

Partnerships with museums, art galleries, libraries and even the BEN for a summer literacy game mean there is a clear focus on raising the achievement of pupils.

And support teams for maths in primary schools and information technology are two of things the LEA does best.

A small but committed team of 10 expert advisers dedicated to helping schools improve is highly prized by head teachers.

Advisers are well qualified and there is clear direction from the top which allows them to focus on schools which need their help most.

They collate a wide range of data to help schools assess their performance and identify problem areas, but Ofsted says they do not need to monitor successful schools so closely.

Overall the team provide good value for money and most schools feel more secure having them in place.

But some head teachers would rather have the money put into school budgets and the LEA should look at ways of speeding up delegation.

However, the report warns this might come as a shock to some schools because the quality of service currently depends on the advisers putting in extra hours in their own time.

A separate team of numeracy experts to support maths teaching in primary schools are a strong feature of the LEA.

Back-up from the literacy team is also good and the two-pronged attack in these subjects is paying dividends. Children are gaining steadily improving results as they pass through primary school, but support for secondary schools is less well developed.

Raising standards of literacy for secondary children is a major challenge and more needs to be done to bring together the many projects to support English in schools and the local community.

The support given to help primary schools go forward is another area where Bolton is praised.

Schools are given very good technical and curriculum support by the award winning ICT department at Castle Hill, says the report.

Most secondary schools develop their own ICT services but this is not proving wholly successful in a small number, the report adds.

Support systems to turn around failing and struggling schools are also sound, according to the report.

Until recently Bolton only had two failing schools and the LEA did well to nurse them back to health so quickly. Three more schools have failed their inspections recently and, since 1997, six have been told to correct serious weaknesses.

Inspectors visited these schools and say they are making satisfactory progress, thanks to tailor-made plans from the LEA but two complained that the LEA is not responding quickly enough.

Provision for pre-school children is a priority for Bolton education chiefs and this is demonstrated by the high number of nursery places.

They say the Early Years Partnership between the voluntary, private and public sectors has been influential in improving services. It has improved relationships and Bolton nurseries now tend to be better than average.