Upper school students celebrate record-breaking GCSE results

An impressive 63 per cent achieved the government’s target of five A* to C grades including English and maths at the Clifton upper school.

As staff are contesting certain results that figure is likely to rise in the coming weeks.

The figure is six per cent higher than that seen at the school last year.

Headteacher Robert Robson has given particular praise to a group of students who achieved results in the very top bracket.

Megan Boyle, Oliver Rayner, Ian Macfarlane, Joel Greer, Heather Mussett and Ryan Ward all got at least six A* grades.

Mr Robson said: “I am really delighted with the results this year. I had promised students and parents that results would rise and I am delighted that students and staff have delivered so spectacularly this year.

“A six per cent rise in our main headline figure is thrilling but behind this are hundreds of individual success stories and it’s these that give teachers so much pleasure.

“The staff, students and parents have worked incredibly hard and these results reward all of that effort.”

Oliver Rayner, 16, was pleased with his results, which included seven A* grades.

He said: “They were pretty much what I was expecting.

“With a lot of subjects you take exams as you go along which is better as it means you don’t have to wait until the end and take all of your exams in one month.”

Oliver, of Shefford will now study A-levels in chemistry, physics and maths at Redborne Upper School and Community College, and hopes to become a civil structural engineer in the long term.

Some good-natured sibling rivalry helped give Joel, 16, who also lives in Shefford added motivation to do well.

He said: “My brother has just started a degree in medicine at the University of Cambridge and I managed to equal his results, so I’m pleased with that!

“I’m going to stay here and do A-levels in philosophy, maths, further maths, physics and chemisty, and I’m thinking of studying physics at university, maybe at Oxford or Cambridge if I can get the right grades.”

Heather, 16, who lives in Stotfold and will start her A-levels at Hitchin Girls’ School in September was very pleased with her grades, especially in subjects where she did not necessarily expect to achieve an A or an A*.

She said: “I got an A* in history and I didn’t think I would do that well in that subject, and an A in maths is also really pleasing as that is one of the hardest subjects of all.”