Cromwell Community College students celebrate A-Level results as many prepare for university this autumn

Students at Cromwell Community College in Chatteris were celebrating their A-Level results this morning with over a fifth gaining the highest A* or A grades.

The college, part of the Active Learning Trust saw 21 per cent of all A-level results at the highest A* or A grades, and almost half (48per cent) were awarded as a B grade or higher.

Seventy-four per cent of grades were A*-C, a five per cent improvement on last year, and the school secured an overall pass rate of 98 per cent.

Twelve of the 15 A-Level subjects offered at the college secured more than 50 per cent of grades at A*-B.

The college also achieved a 100 per cent pass rate across all vocational courses, with 50 per cent returning as the highest Distinction or Distinction* grades, while 90 per cent of the grades were awarded as a Merit or higher.

That means for most pupils they have earned their coveted university places and will be heading off around the country taking courses as diverse as educational psychology and civil engineering.

Among those heading to university is James Kelly whose A*, A and two Bs earned him a place at Bath, where he will be taking educational psychology. He was delighted with his results and said he was looking forward to university.

Things do not always go to plan and Rebekah Clarke, who gained an A and two Bs had failed to secure a place to study to become a vet.

She said: "It is so competitive to get into a university to do veterinary studies and I knew before I even took the exams that I hadn't got a place - they are always over subscribed. So I'm now looking at doing a chemistry degree and I'm going through clearing to get a place, so I don't know where I will be going."

For Harry Rooney its Nottingham Trent to study civil engineering having gained an A and two Bs, while James Turner is off to Lincoln to do business.

Kirsty Playford gained an impressive three As and a B which has seen her accepted at Manchester University to study law, while Grace Wright is off to UE of Bristol to take criminology. And Jenny Larham, who gained an A*, Distinction* and C is off to Sheffield to study psychology.

University is not for everyone and Sofia Rayner is already working full-time in an administration job in Peterborough, which is thoroughly enjoying.

And while others will be packing up to carry on with their studies Mia Fryett will be doing packing of a different sort after gaining a Distinction and an A, she is taking a gap year and is hoping to travel.

Jane Horn, executive principal, said: “We are delighted with these results which show continued year-on-year improvements at the college. We are very proud of the students who can now rightly celebrate and reap the rewards of hard work and efforts over the past two years.”

Mrs Heather Paul, head of sixth form, said: “I am very proud of every student for achieving another excellent set of results. We are very grateful for the continued support from our excellent A Level teaching team and families of our students throughout this important period in their lives. We wish all our students the very best of luck for the future.”

Clive Bush, Acting CEO of The Active Learning Trust, commented: “The staff, students and parents should be very pleased with their results this year. We have seen some outstanding A-Level results across the Trust this year, and I want to congratulate everyone for the dedication they have put in over the past two years to make this possible.”