School leavers in Black Country and Staffordshire celebrate GCSE success

They recieved their eagerly anticipated exam results yesterday after a turbulent educational year brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

Now they are looking to embark on the next phase of their lives by progressing to college.

Beacon Hill Academy in Sedgley saw its third consecutive year of improved results, including 100 percent pass rates in computer science and engineering and 88.2 percent in physics.

Matthew Davies, Judith Parkinson and Evie Jacques were among the first students to get their results, with all three achieving high grades and looking ahead to college.

Matthew was one of the most improved learners at the Academy with two grade nines, five grade eights and two grade sevens and the 16-year-old from Coseley said he was surprised, but happy at what he had achieved.

He said: “I’m very surprised at how well I’ve done, but it’s been worth the effort for the last two years and I think the school has helped me to get over the challenges of the pandemic and achieve my place at King Edwards College in Stourbridge.”

Judith Parkinson was among the top achievers at the academy and the 16-year-old from Tipton spoke about the last two years.

She said: “It’s a shame I didn’t get to have the full experience of sitting the exams, but I think we got a lot of good support from our teachers, who really tried their best to teach us.

“I’m looking forward now to going to college at King Edwards in Stourbridge and studying classics, English and French.”

Evie Jacques was the top achiever with four grade nines and five grade eights and the 15-year-old from Dudley said she had more than exceeded her own expectations.

She said: “I wasn’t expecting this, especially with French, as it’s been so stressful over the last two years, but I kind of preferred it like this as we didn’t have to go through the stress of the exams, which I usually crumble over.

“I’m going to Dudley College to study sixth form there, doing biology, chemistry and either environmental science or computer science.”

Principal Sukhjot Dhami said he was proud and delighted at the improved exam results and said it was testament to the hard work and commitment of everyone.

He said: “These results, secured during turbulent times are exceptional and the realisation of our collective endeavour.

“I’m absolutely delighted for the learners and I think today is a day of celebration and a way to mark the hard work and commitment they put in to achieve these results.”

Kingsmead School in Hednesford was another school celebrating a successful year, with students achieving an average grade of 5+.

Joel Maddocks and Megan Van Den Berg were the top achievers at the school, with Megan securing seven grade nines, three grade eights and one grade seven and Joel receiving three nine grades and six eight grades.

The 16-year-old Joel, who lives in Hednesford, said he was delighted with his results and was looking ahead to sixth form at the school.

He said: “These results are great and really more than I thought I’d get.

“I think the way things have been set up with mock exams made this experience easier for us and considering how much learning we’ve missed due to the pandemic, I’m really happy with the results and on my way to do A-levels in chemistry, biology, PE and business.”

The 16-year-old Megan, who lives in Cannock, was also staying at Kingsmead to do biology and maths A-levels and said the results were worth the hard work.

She said: “I’m feeling really happy today as the whole pandemic was really hard and made going to school really difficult, so I’m really happy with how I did and I’m glad that all the hard work paid off.

“I’ve got to thank the teachers as they supported us really well with online learning and making sure we had everything we needed for the exams last year.”

Head of school Maria Mincher said she was thrilled to see the students fulfill their potential.

She said: “They have inspired us with their resilience and desire to achieve in the face of adversity as we’ve had an outstanding result today from the students which shows the hard work of the students, parents and staff, so I am just very proud of them.”

Hydesville Tower School in Walsall saw 96 percent of all papers taken achieve a strong pass or better at Grade 5+, with many students achieving more than five grades of 7-9.

Vansh Aggarwal, Manveer Kang and Priya Timana all collected seven or more of the highest grades, with each speaking about their success over the last two years.

The 16-year-old Vansh, who lives in Streetly, is currently waiting to hear from several grammar schools, but was celebrating eight grade nines, one grade eight and one grade seven.

He said: “I’m feeling really happy as this has all been much harder due to lockdown and the self-isolation and not having much interaction with teachers, but I’m really pleased with what I’ve achieved and was well supported along the way.”

The 16-year-old Manveer, who lives in West Bromwich, got seven grade nines, one grade eight and two grade sevens and said the successful results were worth the hard work.

He said: “I’m feeling really happy as, obviously, the lockdown made it really hard to focus at times, but the school really helped us with that and we got a lot of support at home, which definitely helped me get the grades I got.

“I’m off to King Edwards Five Ways College to do maths, further maths, economics and politics, which should help me go to the London School of Economics and do an economics degree.”

The 16-year-old Priya, who lives in Sutton Coldfield, said she was happy and surprised at her results, having not expected to have done as well as she did.

Priya got five grade nines, three grade eights and two grade sevens and said: “I was quite uncertain about my results as this whole situation was quite unusual for all of us, with no exams, and what would come from our teachers.

“Luckily, my teachers know me well enough to know how much effort I’ve put in over the years and I’m now able to go to Queen Mary’s grammar school in Walsall to do A-levels in physics, psychology and design and technology.”

Headmaster Warren Honey offered his own praise for the pupils and the hard work they had put in.

He said: “We are thrilled with the achievements of our pupils.

“They have worked hard throughout their time at Hydesville and in particular, showed tremendous tenacity in dealing with the lockdowns and periods of self-isolation.

“These GCSE grades are a fitting reward for all their efforts and given the rigorous assessment process they went through, I know they will feel they have earned these results.”

There was cause for celebration across the the region.

At Highfields School in Wolverhampton, almost one third of students achieved grades between nine to seven - equivalent to A* and A under the old marking methods - in English and Maths.

Meanwhile, 84 per cent achieved a pass - grade four or above, equivalent to a C - in both subjects.

Mr D Treble, head of upper school, said: "It has been a difficult year for students, and they should be incredibly proud of what they have achieved."

At Cheslyn Hay Academy, in Walsall, 29 per cent of grades were between nine and seven, while 60 per cent were between grades nine and five, and 79 per cent between nine and four.

Among the high achievers were Emilia Jones and Joshua Mermod, who achieved seven nines and two eights.

School headteacher Nicky Crookshank said: "We would like to congratulate all students and wish them success as they progress to the next stage of their career."

Meanwhile, the headteacher of Ormiston Sandwell Community Academy, in Oldbury, praised students who "worked so hard under challenging situations".

Among the highest achievers was Viraaj Kalsi who scored seven nines, two distinctions and one eight.

Across the borough, at Wodensborough Ormiston Academy in Wednesbury, students also received praise for their exam results.

Among those to achieve high grades was Mehtab Kaur, who achieved four nines, five eights and two distinction grades.

Leigh Moore, principal, said: "The perseverance, hard work and sheer determination of staff, students and their families to succeed, in the most challenging of circumstances, has been humbling."

Elsewhere, there was cause for celebration at Maple Hayes, a dyslexia school Maple Hayes in Lichfield, where 100 per cent of students achieving seven GCSEs or more, including English and Maths.

Headteacher Dr Daryl Brown said: "We are incredibly proud of our pupils and the results they have achieved this year, in particularly difficult circumstances."

At Windsor High School and Sixth Form, in Halesowen, its Year 11 group achieve 120 grade nine results, with 98 students achieving at least three grades between nine and seven.

The school's highest performers were Anisha Boora, Thomas Forrest and Jenny Price, who each achieved seven grade nines and two grade eight results.

Headteacher Mr SR Lanckham said: "We are delighted with yet another set of amazing outcomes for our students."

There was also praise for pupils at Brownhills Ormiston Academy, in Walsall, with headteacher Helen Keenan saying: "This year group have battled through enormous challenges and have made us all very proud of their achievement."

Charlotte Baker was among the top achievers, achieving five grade nines, four grade eights and two distinctions.

Meanwhile, at The Hart School in Rugeley, 41 per cent of students achieved a grade seven or above.

There were notable successes in art, photography, biology, physics, engineering, music, sport, business and acting.

Principal Miss Rachael Sandham said: "We all know what a difficult year it’s been, but we did not let the focus drop when it came to the goal of achieving the individual needs of our students to enable them to go onto their next chapter of their lives with confidence and the results they needed."