Backwell School students celebrate A-level success

Sarah Robinson

Published: 10:16 AM August 16, 2018 Updated: 9:06 PM October 27, 2020

Sam Peak, Matthew Robert, Georgia Turner and Zak Rizvi at Backwell School's A-level results day. - Credit: Archant

Backwell School’s headteacher said changes to A-levels have meant students sat challenging exams this year – but the school is still celebrating an overall 97.7 per cent pass rate.

Jasmine Knapman and Esther Leong at Backwell School's A-level results day. - Credit: Archant

The pass rate is slightly lower than 99.2 per cent achieved at the school’s sixth form in 2017 and 2016.

More than half of all exam entries this year were graded A* to B, and 24 students achieved three As or higher.

Among those celebrating was Huw Evans who will go to Oxford University to study PPE (philosophy, politics and economics) after achieving three A*s in maths, history and economics.

He said: “You work so hard for so long, this is a great reward. It has all paid off.”

Huw Evans and Luke Barratt at Backwell School's A-level results day. - Credit: Archant

You may also want to watch:

Esther Leong, Jasmin Knapman, Luke Barratt, Matt Roberts and Sophie Ettle also gained at least three A* grades.

Luke has been dreaming of going to Cambridge University to study maths for the past eight years, and learned today he will be able to do just that.

He said: “It is the best place in the world to study maths.”

Esther will go to Oxford University to study French and Russian after achieving three A*s and an A.

Gabriel Cameron, Tom Slade, Enzo Joly and Nathan Stevenson at Backwell School's A-level results day. - Credit: Archant

Headteacher Jon Nunes said “The reforms to A-levels over the past two years means that these are the most challenging exams these students will have sat in their education so far.

“I am very proud of all of our students who have studied incredibly hard – they have not only achieved academic success, but also grown into well-rounded, thoughtful and good humoured young people.

“These results contain many stories of individual students succeeding against adversity and they should all be very proud of what they have achieved. We wish them all the very best for the future.”

Students are increasingly looking at alternatives to going to university, and a number of students will instead take up apprenticeships with national employers.