NEWPORT'S taxpayers today learn how well their council is performing - as the authority publishes its performance figures.

And Newport says its latest figures show it is improving across a wide range of areas. Chris Freegard, (pictured) managing director of Newport council, told the Argus: "This information tells us where we are performing well and also helps us to identify areas where there is room for improvement.

"This year I am pleased that we have shown marked improvements across a range of service areas including education, housing, social services and the environment. "We are committed to providing the people of Newport with the best services possible within available resources.

"The council aims to continue to make improvements across all areas and to ensure that we provide the services that local people need in the way that they want them." Each year the National Assembly, together with the Audit Commission, sets a number of measures of performance which have to be prepared and collected by every council in Wales.

The aim is to help people judge whether they are getting value for money and good quality services from their councils.

The figures for 2000/01 show that Newport council has made improvements in a number of areas.

In schools, Newport pupils have continued to make improvements and last year the percentage of pupils gaining better test results in science increased by 5.7 per cent and in English by 3.2 per cent.

The length of time taken for the council to clear up fly-tipped rubbish was also improved from just over a day to around half a day.

In the provision of care services, more children were able to experience a stable environment through fostering (78.9 per cent of those in care) than in the previous years and more elderly people were helped to continue to live in their own homes.

The Green Box recycling scheme was extended to more areas of town with a further five per cent of residents now being included in Newport's door-to-door collection service. With help from volunteers, the council has been working for several years to improve signposting of footpaths and rights of way.

This partnership work has resulted in a 28 per cent increase in the number of properly marked footpaths and rights of way across the county borough.

The time taken to re-let council-owned homes imp-roved and decisions about rehousing homeless people were taken more quickly.