TWENTY schools in the North-East are failing to give children a decent education, according to new figures.

The schools are among 312 state secondary schools in England which fell below the Government's floor targets for pupils achieving five A* to C GCSE grades including maths and English, and making sufficient progress in those subjects.

Among the schools which did not ensure that 40 per cent of pupils reached the benchmark were Darlington School of Maths and Science - where just 17 per cent of students hit the target - and St Aidan's Church of England Academy, also in Darlington - where 25 per cent of pupils achieved the minimum level.

Several schools in County Durham appeared on the list including King James I Academy, Bishop Auckland, which saw just 36 per cent of pupils achieving the minimum standard, Durham Community Business College for Technology and Enterprise - 27 per cent - and Fyndoune Community College, Durham - 36 per cent.

In Middlesbrough, two secondary schools featured on the list, Unity City Academy - 26 per cent - and Outwood Academy Ormesby - 36 per cent.

Other schools in the region classed as failing according to the Government criteria include Thornaby Academy - 26 per cent - and Redcar Academy - 27 per cent.

None of North Yorkshire County Council's schools made the list.

Across the county, 62.4 per cent per cent of pupils achieved at least five A* to C results including English and Maths - more than five percentage points above the national average. N “We wish to congratulate young people and our schools who work so hard to support them, for this strong performance” said County Councillor Arthur Barker, North Yorkshire’s executive member for schools.

“As always schools in North Yorkshire work extremely hard and effectively to prepare our young people very well for their next steps into training or further and higher education."

Nationally, an analysis of the data, conducted by the Press Association, revealed that a child's chances of attending a decent school still depend heavily on where they live, with ten or more under-performing secondaries in some areas, and none in others.

Schools Minister Nick Gibb said that the results, based on last summer's GCSE grades, show how far the nation has come in raising standards, but added that the Government will tackle the "pockets of persistent under-performance".