A New Milton academy has been recognised as one of the best schools in the country for student progress at GCSE.

The Arnewood School Academy in New Milton is in the top ten per cent of those schools nationally which inspire their students to push academic boundaries during their time there and excel at Key Stage 4.

Every school in the country has been ranked according to how much value they have added to the scores their students were expected to achieve in their GCSE results in 2011.

This is determined by the progress a student has made in that school looking at their test results at ages 11 and 16 using a measure used by the SSAT; a UK representative body for schools.

Arnewood qualifies as one of the top ten per cent of schools after scoring the maximum possible on the SSAT value-added scale for achieving five or more GCSEs at grade A* to C including English and maths.

Sixty-eight per cent of Arnewood students achieve this standard, much higher than most schools.

Sue Williamson, chief executive at the SSAT, said: “The Arnewood School Academy should be congratulated for their stunning performance in adding value to their students’ achievements.

“Arnewood is one of the best schools in the country at outperforming expectations for their pupils and improving their future prospects.

“There is plenty that other schools could learn from Arnewood’s success.”

Chris Hummerstone, headteacher at The Arnewood School Academy, said: “We’re thrilled by this award and the recognition it gives to the hard work of our students, parents and teachers within our community.

“I thank and congratulate everyone involved in this process.”