WINDSOR and Maidenhead had one of the highest proportions of five-year-olds achieving a good level of development in 2017, according to standards set by the Department for Education.

Over the last school year, 76.7% of the pupils reached this standard in the early years assessment, compared to 69% on average in England.

The department benchmark for children with a "good level of development" is to achieve the minimum expected level in five of the seven areas assessed.

These are personal, social and emotional development, physical development, communication and language, mathematics and literacy.

The evaluation is made by the teacher in the final term of Reception.

The subject where most pupils met the minimum expected score in Windsor and Maidenhead was expressive arts and design. About 89.2% of pupils hit the mark.

The lowest level of achievement was in literacy - just 71.4% of pupils met the Government's minimum expected mark.

The topic where children improved their success rate the most was expressive arts and design.

About 89.2% met the level required, up from 87.6% in 2016.

A total of 1,729 pupils were evaluated in Windsor and Maidenhead in 2017, 841 girls and 888 boys.

The average mark across all the areas assessed was 37.3, out of a possible 51.

In England, the average mark was 34.5 in 2017.

Girls in Windsor and Maidenhead performed better than boys, scoring 2.5 points more.

Rosamund McNeil, assistant general secretary at the National Education Union, considered the assessment positive in terms of helping teachers and parents know more about children's capabilities.

She said: "The purpose of this assessment is to gather information and help teachers plan the next stage for that child. Practitioners are really supportive of it and they are very worried because they feel the Government does not like it because it is not just limited to numeracy and literacy."