More than half of Dorset's primary schools have failed to meet the government’s floor standard, new figures show.

Figures released by the Department of Education released on Thursday show out of 77 schools, 44 have failed to meet expected standards in reading, writing and maths.

Schools are considered to be under-performing if fewer than 64 per cent of pupils - which is the national average - reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, or if they fail to make sufficient progress in the three key areas.

The schools are given progress scores which show how much progress pupils made in reading, writing and maths between the end of key stage 1 and the end of key stage 2.

A score above zero means pupils made more progress, on average, than pupils across England a score below zero means pupils made less progress, on average, than pupils across the country.

Buckland Newton Church of England Primary School topped the tables for progress in reading (8.2), writing (7.3) and maths (6.8) with 93 per cent of pupils meeting the expected standard.

The scores placed the school 17th in the country for reading and 18th for writing which headteacher, Nicola Ralph said was "fantastic".

"The results are phenomenal. Progress matters so much to us because that's what really counts. We want every pupil to be the best they can be," Mrs Ralph said. "I have a fabulous team here. We are a small school so everyone knows each other and the children really well. They are so dedicated and these results are not just for the school - they are for everyone."

In addition, 50 per cent children at the school were working at greater depth in reading, 43 per cent in writing and 35 per cent in maths.

Mrs Ralph, who has been at the school since 2005, added: "It's not just about academia. I really believe in developing the whole child. We do a lot of art, drama, music and sport so our students leave us with the whole package."

Both Portland schools were among the top performers in the county with Atlantic be the top performer in Weymouth and Portland for reading and writing.

Atlantic Academy scored 'well above average' in reading (5.2) and writing (3.0) and above average in maths (1.6) with 74 per cent of pupils meeting standards across the board while St George's Primary was 'well above average' in reading (4.3) and maths (3.8), was given an 'average' score of 1.6 for writing and 78 per cent of pupils met standards.

Head of Primary at Atlantic Academy, Melissa Heppell said: "The students and parents have made everyone so proud. The students at Atlantic Academy do everything with a smile, and this comes through in their enthusiasm for their work and their aspirations." Deputy Head of Primary Abby Mills said she had great fun teaching Year 6 students, and it was wonderful to see them flourishing in Year 7.

St Michael's Primary School in Lyme Regis was was the lowest performing school for progress in both reading (-5.2) and maths (-6.1) and was ranked 'well below average' for writing. Just 38 per cent of pupils at the school met the expected standard across the .

Wool CE VA Primary School was by far the worst school for progress in writing (-11.2) and 0 per cent of children met the expected standard across the three key areas.

In West Dorset, just 13 per cent of pupils at Powerstock CE VA Primary School were met expected standards in reading, writing and maths and in Weymouth and Portland, St Andrew's Church of England Primary School came out bottom with 36 per cent.