A local college has been ranked as one of the best in the country, confirmed in the release of Government league tables release last Thursday.

The tables, released on Thursday, Janary 19, place Truro and Penwith College as one of the best performing schools in the country for 16 to 19-year-olds.

In each of the 11 key attainment measures, covering both academic and vocational provision, the college's performance was shown to be above the national and Cornish average.

Now Mark Arnold, director of quality at the college, has described the results as a "great accolade", but promises to continue striving for higher standards at the college.

The latest league tables released by the Government confirm the college's status as one of the leading colleges in the country, beating nearly 200 further education or tertiary colleges in England in academic performance.

Mr Arnold said: "These are increasingly complex tables as the Department for Education looks to move away from simple raw score measure that can reflect selective practices or a very narrow course offer.

"The aim or published data is to inform choice and to empower post-16 learners, families and businesses to make the right choices about where to go for learning and training.

"The recent Ofsted outstanding judgement was a great accolade but you always look to the evidence of the performance tables to make sure that there is no dip in quality with each new cohort.

"These tables certainly confirm that, and they show that teaching and student support are exceptional.

"As always, published DfE tables drive demand for places and these published results add to the urgency of ensuring that our offer is expanded to accommodate all those across Cornwall who wish to access it."

David Walrond, college principal, said: "I think these performance scores reflect the fantastic commitment of all staff here to get the very best outcomes for students.

"These are not easy times for many young people, with some anxiety and uncertainty about the future.

"It's sometimes hard to make the link between current social mobility debates and sets of numbers and grades, but these tables really are proof of where life chances are being enhanced, particularly those indicators which show the progress our learners make on all types of courses, regardless of their starting points.

"It is crucially important for their individual and Cornwall's collective socio-economic futures that we keep extending the very best learning opportunities to young people across the country.

"That is what Truro and Penwith College is committed to doing."