WHATEVER local primary schools are doing, they are clearly doing it correctly.

That 81 percent of Year 6 pupils achieve a Level 4 or higher grading in reading, writing, and maths test - the national average is 79 percent - is something to celebrate.

The staff, pupils, parents and everybody else who makes the ongoing achievement possible should feel very proud indeed.

It is absolutely crucial for children to have a good early grounding in literacy and numeracy, as these skills are vital keys not only to further successful study but also to general wellbeing in later life.

An adult with poor literacy skills is at a disadvantage in everything from finding a job to reading the instructions on a medicine label. Poor numeracy, meanwhile, can make a person more vulnerable to being cheated and less able to handle a household budget.

The price of not learning those basic skills can be a lifetime of misery.

Extra congratulations are due to St Mary’s Catholic Primary School and the other establishments whose performances were especially good.

Even allowing for the fact that no two schools are the same, and that the nature of the challenges they face varies widely, the best-performing schools are beacons of achievement for the rest.

They are positive proof of how good a school can be, and we hope their techniques can be adopted by those which aren’t doing as well.

We also hope overall performance continues to improve and act as an example to the rest of the country.