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‘A fantastic set of results’: York students excel in GCSEs

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Congrats! Henry-James Hatton (left) and Luke Dickinson receive an excellent set of results at Joseph Rowntree School

A long summer of waiting was over today as York students received their GCSE results.

And they have excelled. York scored a five per cent increase in students attaining the English Baccalaureate, while 66 per cent of pupils gained 5+ A*-C grades (including English and maths).

This is a 2.5% increase on last year’s result, going against the national trend of slight decline.

Cllr Stuart Rawlings, cabinet member for education, children and young people, said:

Yet again these young people and the school communities supporting them have stepped up to the mark and earned a fantastic set of GCSE results, helping York maintain its place as one of the highest performing local authorities in the UK.

I congratulate them all!

Here are some of the stories from York schools.

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What a year!

All Saints stars… Photograph: All Saints RC School
All Saints stars… Photograph: All Saints RC School

All Saints RC School reports a record year for GCSE results both overall and individually.

Thirty Year 11 students achieved over 8 or more A* and As. Some of the biggest smiles were on some of our special needs students.

Head teacher Bill Scriven said:

What is so pleasing is that students of all abilities have exceeded their targets and some of the individual achievements have been astonishing!

All our students deserve to be so proud of their achievements.

What a year!

Chair of governors Peter Cannings said: “I would like to congratulate everybody and express my gratitude to all the staff for their care for each individual student and their continuing drive and determination.”

Best ever progress

Some of the Joseph Rowntree students who achieved multiple A*/A grades. From left to right, Maya Saint John (10), Lotte Horberry(8), Isobel McLaughlin(11), Catriona Coe(11), Kathryn Barge(8), Emma Young(10), Ben Kilner(10), Owen Marshall (9)
Some of the Joseph Rowntree students who achieved multiple A*/A grades. From left to right, Maya Saint John (10), Lotte Horberry(8), Isobel McLaughlin(11), Catriona Coe(11), Kathryn Barge(8), Emma Young(10), Ben Kilner(10), Owen Marshall (9)

Following on from a great set of A level results, Joseph Rowntree School students recorded the best ever results at Key Stage 4 in terms of progress made from the end of Key Stage 2.

Altogether 64% of Jo Ro students achieved five GCSEs including English and maths, and the leadership team described as “superb” the progress students made across a number of subjects such as English, maths, science and the arts.

More than 20% of students taking GCSEs this summer achieved five or more A* or A grades, and 10% of students achieved eight or more A* or A grades.

Head Richard Crane said:

This significant academic achievement is a reflection of the hard work and dedication of our students and staff and parental support.

Congratulations to all of our students who took examinations this summer, and we wish them all the very best for the future.

Some Jo Ro students with multiple A*/A grades

Henry-James Hatton (12)
Catriona Coe (11)
Fay Crockett (11)
Jack Fletcher (11)
Isobel McLaughlin (11)
Matthew Parker (11)
Chadwick Cosgrove-Stephenson (10)
Benjamin Kilner (10)
Maya Saint John (10)
Emma Young (10)
Lydia Keeping (9)
Owen Marshall (9)
Isobel McArthur (9)
Kathryn Barge (8)
Jenna Bunyan (8)
Luke Dickinson (8)
Lotte Horberry (8)
Peter Spain (8)
Matthew Taylor (8)
Elena Whitely (8)

‘Exceptional young people’

Students at Huntington School achieved many individual successes as well as an impressive set of schools records.

The school saw

  • 70% of students gain A*-C GCSE grades in English and mathematics, an improvement of 3% on last year
  • more than 40% of students attained the full set of English Baccalaureate qualifications, Huntington’s best figure ever
  • 12% of students attaining ten or more GCSEs at grades A*/A, another record
  • 30% of all entries awarded A*/A grades, our best ever percentage of top grades at the school.

One of the star performers is Lucy Edmunds who gained 11 A*s and an A in Further Maths this year, to add to her GCSE Latin A* result from last year, giving her a grand total of 12A*s and an A.

Head teacher John Tomsett said:

These results come from teachers and students working hard together in an atmosphere of mutual respect.

Indeed, I would argue that the most valuable outcome for all our students is a good set of qualifications secured in a culture of love.

Individuals like Lucy Edmunds managed to gain 11 A* grades and 1 grade A as well as train with the Team GB Junior Rowing girls’ quad to compete at the Coupe de la Jeunesse in Poznan, Poland last month where she won a silver medal.

We should all work hard and play hard and if we can say, hand on heart, that we did all we could, then that is all we can ask of ourselves. And that is the case with this exceptional group of young people and their teachers.

Huntington students with 10 or more A*/A grades

Lucy Edmunds (12 A*/1 A)
Charlie Drury (11/2)
Safa Sadozai (11/2)
Benjamin Brown (11/1)
Alice Linaker (10/1)
Abigail Brownlee (9/3)
Charlotte Boyle (8/5)
Isobel Shoffren (8/3)
William Young (7/6)
Molly Lyons (7/5)
Joanne Draper (6/6)
Madison Dews (6/5)
Rebecca Beukers-Stewart (6/4)
Isobel Davies (6/4)
Isabel Buchanan (5/5)
Emily Burnett (5/5)
Andre Vasconcelos (4/8)
Luca Rago (4/6)
Ellen Van Opstal (4/6)
Alexander MacDonald (4/5)
Finn O’Rourke (3/9)
Madison Hancocks (3/8)
Rebecca Higginbottom (3/8)
Eleanor Mitchell (3/8)

Some of the happy students at Manor CE Academy
Some of the happy students at Manor CE Academy

Excellent results

Over in Fulford School 81.7% of students achieved the new Basics performance measure of A*-C in English and maths.

Altogether 35.7% of entries were at A*/A with a substantial increase in the A*/A grades achieved by girls. Thirty two students gained at least 10 grades at A*/A with 13 of these students achieving 12 A*/A grades.

And the year group obtained a 100% pass rate at 5 GCSE grades A*-G.

Head Lorna Savage said:

These excellent results reflect the talent and hard work of our students, the support they have received from their families and crucially the excellent teaching and support provided by the staff within our school.

Today is another great day to be part of our Fulford community and to celebrate the successes of our students.

Incredible effort

All smiles at Millthorpe School
All smiles at Millthorpe School

At Millthorpe School 70% of students achieved five passes at grade C or better including both English and maths, a 4% improvement on 2015.

They also established a new best of 44% for the government’s favoured English Baccalaureate (EBacc) measure – which places the school in the top 12% in the country. And one in eight students achieved 10 or more GCSEs at Grade A or A*.

Head Trevor Burton said he was very proud of his students.

I know the incredible effort they have put in throughout their time here, so I’m delighted to see how well they have performed because it is richly deserved.

The results are also a great testament to the tireless work of our staff and the support of our parents and carers and are especially impressive against a backdrop of a further fall nationally in the GCSE pass rate at C and above.

Is this our best ever set of results? The goalposts keep moving so it is difficult to say. What is more important to me is that today, Millthorpe students can walk away knowing they have done as much as they can to move on to the next stage in their education in a position of great strength.

The Millthorpe gang with their grades
The Millthorpe gang with their grades

Outstanding achievements at Millthorpe

Rebecca Foster (12 A* + 1 A)
Bethan Law (11 A* + 2 A, including A* Distinction in Further Maths)
Ella Field (12 A*)
Emma Phillips (11 A* + 1 A, including A* Distinction in Further Maths)
Patrick Dewhirst (10 A* + 1 A)
Luke McDonnell-McKeown (9 A* + 2 A)
Joe Newton (9 A* + 2 A)
Tom Percival (7 A* + 5 A, including A* Distinction in Further Maths)

Significant improvement

At Canon Lee School the Year 11 students have secured a set of results that show significant improvement upon last year.

At least a dozen students have gained results that are predominantly A and A*s and many have made significant progress in relation to their targets.

Principal Helen Dowds and vice-principal Mrs Johnston thanked all the parents and staff for their hard work and commitment towards supporting the school and making certain the children in our care are successful.

They said:

We are clearly encouraged that the improvement journey at Canon Lee has truly begun and as we continue on this journey we wish our students every success as they take their next steps.

Exceeding expectations

Archbishop Holgate's student Katherine Chippett achieved 12 GCSEs at a grade A* or A
Archbishop Holgate’s student Katherine Chippett achieved 12 GCSEs at a grade A* or A

Archbishop Holgate’s School students are once again celebrating results that exceed the expected performance of the top 25% of similar schools nationally.

Altogether 74% gained A*-C in Maths and English which is the highest the school has ever achieved.

And 23% of the year group achieved 5 A* and A grades.

Head Andrew Daly said: “I would like to thank all our staff, our students and their parents for their hard work and commitment to the school, which has rightly been rewarded with excellent grades for themselves but also record results for the school.”

Deputy head Alexis Green-Harding said:

These results are a testament to all the hard work and dedication of both staff and students. As the government raises the bar on GCSE standards it is really pleasing to see our students holding their own once again.

One in a millennium!

Risen to the challenge: some of the York High students
Risen to the challenge: some of the York High students

At York High School the proportion of Year 11 students who have gained five good GCSE grades has almost doubled this year compared to 2015.

Head David Ellis said: “We were extremely disappointed with the way that grade boundaries were moved in 2015 which had a negative impact for our students a year ago but I am incredibly proud of the way that the whole school community has risen to the challenge in the last 12 months resulting in the progress we have made this year.”

Associate head teacher Rod Sims said students had responded brilliantly to the extra demands that staff placed on them.

He said:

They have turned up for extra revision sessions in large numbers, in some cases very early in the morning!

The young people recognised that as the examination boards continue to raise the bar the challenge of gaining high grades is ever increasing and they worked with staff incredibly hard to gain the very best grades that they could.

Chloe Stead, the first baby born in the new millennium, picks up her results from York High School head David Ellis
Chloe Stead, the first baby born in the new millennium, picks up her results from York High School head David Ellis

One pupil celebrating results is Chloe Stead who achieved 7 GCSEs at grade C. Chloe was the first baby born in York in the new millennium.

Mr Ellis said:

We are delighted for Chloe and the whole year group. Many pupils of all abilities have fulfilled their own individual targets and potential which will allow them to move successfully on to the next stage in their education and careers.