New figures out today show that Cumbria's GCSE pupils are lagging behind their peers elsewhere in the country.

Local students who picked up their GCSE results and equivalent qualifications last August achieved on average almost a quarter of a grade less than similar pupils in England.

That's according to the Department for Education's new Progress 8 measure - the new benchmark introduced to demonstrate the impact a secondary school has on its pupils taking into account children's prior primary attainment.

School Progress 8 measures are usually figures between -1 and +1. The national average is zero.

For schools with a Progress 8 measure of zero it means their pupils are making the progress expected of them while they are at secondary school, between the ages of 11 and 16.

And, as an illustration, those with a score of +1 are seeing pupils getting a grade more in each qualification than similar pupils across the country.

Cumbria's first Progress 8 figure is -0.23 and lies below the national average yet if old measures were still used the picture would be different.

The new progress measures replace the old attainment benchmark of recording the proportion of pupils achieving at least five C grades including English and maths at GCSE.

More than 56 per cent of year 11 pupils in Cumbria who took exams last summer celebrated getting five or more A*-C grades including English and maths - higher than the national average of 53.5 per cent.

Headteachers are warning people that the new progress measures are not yet a true picture of school performance.

Exams are continuing to go through a raft of government reforms which are not expected to be completed until 2019.

GCSE courses and exams are being made tougher and more rigorous.

Grades are also getting an overhaul. Existing A*-G grades are being phased out and results will be given out as numbers.

The first - for English and maths exams - will be handed out next summer.

Simon Jackson, headteacher of Keswick School, said: "It is confusing for people because Progress 8 is a relative score and it is not an absolute measure.

"Attainment is still quite key for us because it is a requirement for things like sixth form, knowing what grades you have for moving onto A-levels, and for apprenticeships and employment.

"You've got to have an element of sympathy for people outside education when it comes to understanding what is happening."

School standards minister Nick Gibb said: "Under our reforms there are almost 1.8 million more young people in good or outstanding schools than in 2010, and through our new, fairer Progress 8 measure we will ensure that even more children are supported to achieve their full potential."

The Department for Education has also confirmed that 282 schools in England - 9.3 per cent - are below the government minimum floor standard.

Schools with a Progress 8 measure below -0.5 are not achieving the minimum standard, advice from the DfE states.

In 2015, 329 - 11 per cent - schools were below the previous floor standard.