Local Students Celebrate A Level Success
Some local schools bucking the national trend with best results in years
Happy faces at St Bemedict's School
Students across the borough have been celebrating their A Level results (Thursday, August 15th) with several bucking the national trend with their successes.
St Benedict's, Ealing, is celebrating its best results in six years with an increase in top A*/A grades to 42.2%.
Seven students achieved straight A* grades in at least 3 subjects and twenty four St Benedict’s students have at least 3 A grades at A level this year Best results were 80% of exams in Art and at least 60% of exams in Drama, German, History and Maths scored A* or A grades.
Headmaster, Andrew Johnson, said: “It is excellent to see top grades up once again at St Benedict’s. I offer my warmest congratulations to our students and their teachers, who have worked so hard to achieve such impressive results”.
Latymer Upper School Students Secure Places At Top American Universities
20 students are off to US top universities including Josh Willcox, who was awarded 4A* and Alex Wright, who received 3A* and an A grade – both will go to Harvard, and twins Cecile and Felix Ramin ( above) who are off to Yale and Chicago respectively.
Roya Sabbaghi, who received 4A*and Melita Gostelow, who has 3A* grades, are both off to Oxbridge to study Engineering and Natural Sciences, respectively, whilst Sophia Rzym will go to Sheffield to study Aerospace Engineering.
· 70% of grades were at A*/A
· 20 students secured places at top North American universities, including Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Georgetown and Brown
· 78% of Sixth Form new joiners’ grades were A*/A
· Of girls taking science subjects 63% were A*/A
· Record number of pupils to study Liberal Arts at University
Latymer Upper School Head, David Goodhew, said : "The Class of 2019 have exciting futures to look forward to in the next stage of their educational journey. Our pupils are encouraged to foster an international outlook on life during their time here so it’s no surprise that many will be studying abroad, the majority in the US."
A Level Results: Bucking the trend at St Augustine’s Priory
St Augustine’s Priory said that its results had bucked the national trend. Whilst nationally, English Literature is declining, at St Augustine’s it is in rude health, they said.
Three in five girls have achieved their first place at university against 1 in 5 nationally.
At St Augustine’s Priory 34% of all A Level grades are A* - A (up from 32% in 2018), surpassing national results where 25.5% grades were A* or A, down on 26.4% in 2018.
At St Augustine’s Priory 73% grades are A* - B. With 100% A* and A grades in Biology, Physics, Russian and Spanish and 100% A* - B grades in Chemistry, Maths, History, Art, Classical Civilisation, Drama, German and Music.
Three A Level students gained A*s and As in a range of subjects: English Literature, History, Spanish, Chemistry, German, Maths, Physics, Business, Geography and Sociology. In the EPQ (Extended Project Qualification) more than three quarters of grades achieved were A* - A.
In addition, in Year 11, 100% of Cambridge IGCSE History candidates achieved the grades 9, 8 and 7 with 54% of pupils achieving the top grade of 9 and 23% achieving grades 8 and 7 equally. Also in Year 11, in the FSMQ Additional Maths qualification, which stands as a bridge between GCSE and A Level, 60% of candidates achieved the top grade of A.
The school said the results were "a winning combination of community and working to pupils’ strengths, working well with teachers and parent, and hard work!"
Isleworth & Syon Boys School
Top performer was Theo Mitchell Smith, who gained A*s across the board, in biology, chemistry and mathematics, while classmate Tim-Frederic Volle gained an A* (biology) and 2 As (chemistry and maths). Both young men are pursuing veterinary medicine, at Bristol and the Royal Veterinary College respectively.
The school saw particular success in science department, which runs a Medic Club for Year 12 students to encourage careers in medical sciences. The club is orchestrated by our head of science, who regularly liaises with veterinary colleges across the country.
Headteacher Euan Ferguson commented, “It’s been another fantastic year for our young people who continue to thrive in a supportive school environment under the tutelage of specialist subject staff. Many are heading off to some of the best universities in the country, while others will enter the world of work via apprenticeships or another route. Whatever their next
steps, we are proud of their achievements and wish them well for the future.”
Gumley Girls School Best Results In Three Years
Students and staff at Gumley House School FCJ are celebrating increases in A level results with more students gaining the A*- A grade, surpassing the last 3 years of results and more than half achieving A*-B grades.
Head Girl, Olivia is one step closer to achieving her dream of becoming a Vet after receiving her outstanding A*, A*, A in Biology, Chemistry and Maths. She is now heading to Liverpool University to study Veterinary Science. “Aim high and work hard” is Olivia’s advice to the new Year 12 students starting at The Sixth.
Outstanding performances from key departments include Art, French, Italian, English Literature, Maths and Further Maths where the majority of students achieved A* - C grades. In addition, our students studying the Chinese Cambridge Pre-U received outstanding results, including A*.
Other successes were Sofia who will attend King’s College London to study Business and Spanish following her 2 A’s and an A* in History, Maths and Spanish, Emily who will study Sports Science at East Anglia., Rachel hoping for a future career in International Development following her A* and 2 A’s in French, Spanish and History.
Caroline Braggs, Headteacher responded: “I am incredibly proud of the excellent relationships that have been forged between our students, families and the staff body which have made these results possible. One of the key reasons for our success has been the consistent focus on the interests of the students, developing a broad range of skills and responsibilities. Thank you to the astonishing staff whose commitment has enabled our students to reach their potential and go on to continue creating their stories as they carve out their future careers.”
Hounslow Borough Schools Achieve 97 % Pass Rate
The numbers of students taking A level exams in the borough's schools increased from 1,200 last year to nearly 1,400 this year. Over 70% of A levels were awarded grades between A* and C.
Chiswick School received a total of 17% A*-A grades, which is an increase of 10% on last year in the top category. However overall it fared less well than last year.
A total of 38% entries were A*-B grades and almost two-thirds of grades awarded (60%) were A*-C, compared to the 2018 results of 55% and 81% respectively.
Some of the best results were achieved by students who had attended Chiswick School since Year 7.
Visnja Javanovic will be going to study Philosophy at King's College London, after achieving an A* in Philosophy, A in English and A in Biology. She said she was so nervous before results day that she did not sleep a wink.
Louis Medd will be studying English at Bristol University after receiving A* grades in History, A in Politics and A in English. He praised the school for encouraging him to aim high and said he received lots of pastoral support and UCAS guidance.
Headteacher Laura Ellener praised the successful students and wished them well in the future.
August 16, 2019