A DISMAL new report suggests that Poole’s secondary schools are among the worst in the country and continuing to deteriorate.

In comparison neighbouring Bournemouth's have been ranked among the best.

The chief inspector of Ofsted’s annual report says the number of pupils attending good or outstanding secondary schools in Poole has plunged by 19 percentage points since last year.

This places the town 114th out of the 150 authorities assessed and means the borough has been leapfrogged by other struggling areas such as Darlington and Portsmouth.

The figure of just 68 per cent of students attending good or outstanding secondary schools overseen by Borough of Poole is in sharp contrast to Bournemouth, which scored 100 per cent. For Dorset County Council the figure was 93 per cent.

Liberal Democrat opposition councillor Mike Brooke, a former teacher, branded Poole’s performance as “totally unacceptable”.

“This is further confirmation of the appalling way the Conservative administration has dealt with our schools,” he told the Daily Echo.

Cllr Brooke said the portfolio holders for young people have been “ultimately responsible” and have shown a “lack of understanding of what is required”.

Cllr Janet Walton had been portfolio holder until she was elected as leader by the Conservative group in May and succeeded by Cllr Mike White.

The number of pupils attending good or outstanding primary schools in Poole has increased by one percentage point to 87. In Bournemouth this figure moved up by 17 points to 94 per cent and for Dorset County Council primaries it dropped by three to 78 per cent.

This latest report comes after Ofsted wrote to Poole council in September warning the authority to “urgently address” its underachievement.

Borough of Poole's portfolio holder for children, Cllr White, said: "We are not complacent and the council is actively working with those schools not currently rated good or outstanding by Ofsted to achieve the improvements identified by the inspectors.”

Bournemouth council’s education portfolio holder, Cllr Nicola Greene, said her town’s performance was a “fantastic achievement” and is "testament to the hard work" of all involved.