Southborough High School has been named as one of the fastest improving schools in the country, according to Government figures released last week.

The Surbiton school boosted its GCSE pass rate for pupils gaining five or more A* to C grades including English and maths by 15 percentage points, catapulting it away from the 30 per cent “failing school” mark introduced by Government schools secretary Ed Balls last year.

The results mean the school is the joint 13th most improved in the country - an achievement put down by headteacher Sunil Chotai to the hard work of staff and pupils alike.

He said: “We have been vindicated by this, and we’re really moving away from that 30 per cent mark.

“We thought it was a fantastic achievement on our part, and all the signs are very positive.

“We’re not complacent, and we’re not going to sit back and say ‘it’s a great report’, because there’s a lot more to do, but all the signs recently have been indicating that we’re a rapidly improving school.”

Although the school’s GCSE results have rocketed, its pupil absence rate of 7.7 per cent - which is above the national average - is less impressive, a situation Mr Chotai said he was “very conscious of”.

He said: “You have to remember that approximately one quarter of 1 per cent of our absences are unattributable.

“We have been chasing parents over that, and thankfully with most of our boys it has worked.

“We have a very diverse ethnic mix at the school - only last weekend I was looking at three letters from parents who wanted to take their children on holiday to India.

“Sometimes it’s that sort of thing, but it’s clearly something we’re aware of and want to improve.

“Our target is to get below 7 per cent, and those are last year’s figures anyway - when this year’s come out we will see an improvement.”

The school is a priority for renovation in Kingston Council’s bid for the Government’s Building Schools for the Future funding, the result of which is expected in the spring.