Day for tears of results joy: Round-up of A-level results

In schools and colleges all over Shropshire and Mid Wales students were tearing open their results envelopes.

Some schools in the region saw 100 per cent pass rates and many students discovered they had achieved the coveted top A* grade.

In Telford, Fiona O'Brien, the principal at New College, said she was absolutely delighted with the results the students obtained.

"It is an emotional day, and it is wonderful to see that, in the majority of cases, the tears from the students are ones of joy and not sadness."

The wait is over, the brown envelope has dropped through the letterbox – but unfortunately your grades weren't good enough to get a place at your chosen university.

Fear not, help is at hand in the shape of the clearing system, which could still see you end up at uni in a matter of weeks.

Put simply it's the system which matches universities that still have places with students who do not have offers.

The system is certainly no second-rate option. Last year there were more than 30,000 courses on offer through clearing, so there's plenty of choice out there.

This year around 60,000 hopeful undergraduates are expected to hit their phones and keyboards in the hope of landing a place on an undergraduate degree course.

In clearing, applicants make contact with universities directly to talk to them about the courses available and whether their application can be considered.

Students can contact as many universities as they like, and may receive verbal offers from several of them.

If an offer is made, each university provides the prospective student with a course code, institution code and a time period for which the offer is valid (typically 12 to 48 hours).

When the student has decided which offer they want to take up, they must enter the details on Ucas Track within the agreed time period using the "Add a Clearing Choice" button.

This button should have become active last night.

Students can only enter one choice and you must have discussed your application with the university first.

Here are a few basic tips on clearing:

l Just because you're in clearing does not mean you have failed. A lot of people go into clearing with really high grades.

l In 2013, about 57,000 applicants (about 10 per cent of all uni hopefuls that year) found a place on a course through clearing.

l Just because a course is in clearing does not mean that it is a bad course.

l You can apply for any subject you like, just take care to ensure you really want to study it for three or more years.

l Don't rush into a decision. Do your research to make sure the course and university are right for you.

Jon Elsmore, Dean of Students at the University of Wolverhampton, which has a campus in Telford, said: "The important advice for students receiving their results is not to panic. It can feel like there's a lot of pressure to make a quick decision, but it is really important to make sure you make the right decision for you, and that's where getting expert advice comes in.

"We have staff members on hand who can talk students through their options and find the right opportunity for them. Whether students want to talk to someone in person at a school or college, pop into one of our Gateway advice centres in Stafford, Telford or Wolverhampton, attend the University Open Day or call our dedicated clearing hotline on (01902) 323505."

Plenty of students who didn't get the grades they were after will know very little about the universities they are now applying to.

Meanwhile in Newport, at Adams' Grammar School students returned another impressive set of A-level results. Out of 152 students, 260 A or A* grades were achieved and 74 per cent of results were graded A* to B.

Headmaster Gary Hickey said: "I'd like to congratulate all of our students and I wish them all the very best for the future."

Star performers at Adams were Omar Al-Allaf and Nathan Bottomley, who both got four A*s, while a clutch of others including Jonathan Broomfield, Hasan Iqbal and Adam Jan all got three A*s.

At Newport Girls' High School, students achieved a 99 per cent pass rate with 73 per cent of grades between A* and B.

Headteacher Ros Garner said she was delighted with the results.

"We are pleased to maintain our consistently high level of achievement across all subjects and we wish all of our girls well," she added.

In Bridgnorth, more than 40 per cent of grades were between A* and B at Bridgnorth Endowed School, with seven in 10 grades at C or above.

Star student was Alice Parr, who got a hat-trick of A*s in English literature, history and RE.

Headteacher Phil Loveday said: "We were very pleased with the A level results last summer which were amongst the best in the county and this year's results show that we have built successfully on them.

"I would like to congratulate students and staff on an excellent year's work."

Oldbury Wells School was also celebrating A-level results in Bridgnorth, with a pass rate of 99 per cent this year.

Headteacher Sarah Godden said: "We are really pleased with how well our students have done this year.

"Of particular note is that 61 per cent of A-level passes were at grade C or better.

"This means that our students have been able to secure places on reputable university courses, coveted apprenticeships or training, according to their aspirations and wishes."

Frankie Ward got two A*s, an A and a B at Oldbury Wells, while Beth Shilling got two As and three Bs.

Also in the south of the county, at Ludlow College, headteacher Carl Morris said they were very pleased.

He said: "We've had a fantastic year – A-level results are very, very good with a 99.6 percent pass rate. That works out at 28 of our 29 subjects getting 100 per cent passes. High grades are also up at A-level by four per cent.

"It's hard to highlight a subject that has done particularly well as they all have, to be fair.

"The results are down to the hard work of students and the staff at the end of the day."

For 23-year-old Samantha Lister, it's a case of if at first you don't succeed, try again.

Samantha, from Stirchley, Telford, came back into education at New College at the age of 21 after struggling initially at college when she was 17. She returned to study French, modern history, English language, English literature and extended project.

And now she is celebrating after getting grades A*, A, A, B and B, meaning she is now going to Manchester University to study French and Japanese.

She said: "It didn't work out for me when I first went to college, so I got a job with Telford & Wrekin Council, working in the drug and alcohol team.

"But I loved foreign languages and realised I wanted to study for a foreign language degree – which meant giving up my well-paid job."

Shrewsbury School has also praised its students after achieving its best year of A-level results.

In total the school saw 86.1 per cent of the exams resulting in A*, A or B grades.

Headmaster Mark Turner expressed his delight at his pupils' success: "I am extremely proud of this year's splendid collection of A-level results, which are a tribute to the hard work of our pupils and staff alike."

There were a number of individual success stories with 19 pupils gaining at least three A* grades, and 55 pupils achieving an A* or A in all their subjects.

Both last year's joint Heads of School, James Plaut and Esmé O'Keeffe, gained an A* in each of their subjects. James studied English, geography and history, and Esmé took French, history, Latin and spanish.

Impressive too was the performance of Ronald Chen who gained six A* grades in maths, further maths, biology, chemistry, physics and chinese.

All 12 pupils at Shrewsbury School with offers from Oxford or Cambridge universities achieved the required grades to meet their offers.

The school's AS results from the lower-sixth pupils saw 65 per cent of grades achieved at A or B, while 38 pupils gained A grades in all their subjects and 80 gained nothing less than a B.

Teenager Joe Sherwood, who lives in Whitchurch and studies at Adams' Grammar School, got the results he needed to get into Durham University to study theology.

The 18-year-old got an A in religious studies, A in politics and a B in English, which were enough to get the teenager into one of the country's top 10 universities.

Joe, who was obviously nervous about seeing his A-level results, said: "I had been thinking about it up until this morning but once I was here it was a big relief to get the letter open and for the grades to come up."

But despite his initial nerves, he knew he had the results he wanted. He said: "I was quietly confident the whole time; there is always a little bit of doubt but I always had enough faith in myself and the exam boards."

Students at Shrewsbury High School were also celebrating with 90 per cent of all grades at A* to C and almost half at A* to A grade.

Headmaster Michael Getty said: "These results are simply stunning and huge credit must go to our incredible teaching staff and our very bright, hardworking and dedicated girls. These results take our sixth form to a point where A* and A grades at A-level are now simply becoming the norm. However, the girls' results are all the more special because they are achieved whilst balancing incredibly full involvement in broader activities in the sport, music, drama and beyond."

Mr Getty praised the level of achievement and said he was thrilled at the students' success.

He said: "Approximately one-third of this wonderful year group left school today with all of their examinations at A* to A grade with a bunch achieving the flawless straight A* sweep. We are thrilled for the girls as they now proceed on to the country's best universities to study a hugely diverse range of degree courses, from fine art to physics and from medicine to management.

The high school's results will also see a number of pupils going on to Oxford or Cambridge and Mr Getty said the school now has a community of former pupils studying at the world-famous universities.

He said: "With more girls taking up places at Oxbridge this year, it means we now have over a dozen of our girls studying at Oxford and Cambridge at this time. I am sure this is quite inspiring to our new sixth formers showing them that securing places at these renowned institutions isn't something unusual."

North Shropshire College celebrated a seven per cent increase in grades A to C at A-level and a 100 per cent pass rate in 12 of the 17 subjects studied at A-level including maths, English language/literature, geography, history, ICT and many more.

Jackie Doodson, principal and chief executive, said the college would offer 26 A-level subjects next year.

She said: "I am delighted with our students' results, particularly those in the arts area, which includes fine art, photography, graphics and textiles, who achieved a 100 per cent pass rate for the second year running.

"The high standard of work in the arts was exhibited in the college foyer at the Oswestry campus throughout June and July.

"The results are a tribute to the hard work of our students, the professionalism of our staff and the dedicated support of parents and guardians."

Emily Ratcliffe, 17, was celebrating getting a grade higher than she expected across the board at Ludlow College.

She got As in media and sociology and a B in drama, and will be going on to study primary education at Chester University.

She said she was expecting two Bs and a C so was overjoyed. "I have always liked the idea of being a teacher and I have loads of volunteer experience," she said. "I don't really like big cities but Chester seems nice, and it's a nice distance from home.

"It seems like a really good course."

Having moved to Ditton Priors, near Bridgnorth, from Milton Keynes less than two years ago, she said studying at the small local college had been a pleasant change from what she was used to.

Adcote Girls School saw an almost 100 per cent pass rate, with 49 per cent of candidates gaining an A* or A grade.

Among the success stories was Aleksandra Swiatkowska (crr) who achieved three A* and two A grades and Maria Derda, who obtained two A* and an A grade.

Headmaster Gary Wright said: "Although exam results are by no means our only measure of success, academic performance is nevertheless crucial in helping our students achieve their aspirations.

"Much of this academic success has been in what are traditionally the very toughest subjects such as maths, further maths and the sciences. The girls should now feel confident and well prepared academically to embark on their university courses."

At Moreton Hall School, in Weston Rhyn, Oswestry, 67 per cent of grades achieved were A*, A or B with a significant number of students achieving straight As and A*s in their subjects.

Ishika Roy-Chowdhury, from Oswestry, will go on to study economics at Edinburgh having gained an A* and two As in economics, maths and chemistry.

Holly Dempster-Edwards, also from Oswestry, achieved three A* in Spanish, French and Latin and will take up her place at St Hilda's College, Oxford, to read French and Spanish.

Records were smashed at Concord College, in Acton Burnell, near Shrewsbury, as students found out their A-level results.

Overall 95.1 per cent of grades awarded were at A*, A or B grade.

Ten Concord students achieved four A*s or more and 26 students achieved three A*s or more, with the college recording a 100 per cent pass rate.

Principal Neil Hawkins said: "Their grades place them amongst the best year groups in Concord's history."

Shrewsbury Sixth Form College recorded a 98 per cent pass rate across its 711 students, with 20 per cent of students achieving A* to A grades, and 45 per cent achieving A* to B grades.Martin Ward, college principal, said he was delighted.

There were 'beaming faces' at North Shropshire's two Academy Trust Schools as students and staff celebrated outstanding A-level results at The Marches, Oswestry, and Sir John Talbot's School, Whitchurch.

For The Marches, it was the first ever set of A-level results for the two-year-old sixth form, which achieved a pass rate of over 99 per cent and 41 per cent of entries at grades A*-B.

At the Sir John Talbot's School, which joined the Marches Academy Trust last year, 68 per cent of students achieved one or more A*- B grade a 24 per cent rise.

Trust chief executive Sarah Longville said: "These fantastic results will give our students the key to open doors to a variety of academic and professional opportunities. We wish them the very best for the future."

Marches students Alice Gillham, and Maddy McRann-Smith, both 18, were delighted with their ABB and ACC grades.

"I am going to the University of Chester to do early child studies," Alice said.

Maddy, who will study media and communications in Birmingham said: "My parents can have their dining room table back now I have finished my A-levels."

Students across north Shropshire have been celebrating some of the best results their colleges have ever seen.

In Wem, students at Adams College celebrated a 100 per cent pass rate in 23 A-level subjects and more A* grades than ever before, with 70 per cent of grades between A* and C.

Headteacher Liz Dakin said: "We are absolutely thrilled, as these achievements are the result of a lot of hard work by both students and staff over the last year.

"I would like to congratulate the students and wish them every success as they venture out to apprenticeships or university. Many are going off to ambitious courses in law, engineering, business, textiles, maths and teaching. Others are off to do apprenticeships."

Meanwhile, students at Ellesmere College Sixth Form achieved a 98.9 per cent pass rate with 60 per cent of all grades in the top A* to B grades.

For the girls alone, nearly 70 per cent of their grades were in the A* to B band and a 100 per cent pass rate.

Head girl Nina Handzewniak achieved four A* grades in biology, maths, chemistry and physics and will go on to read medicine at Oxford.

Headteacher Brendan Wignall said: "It is always a pleasure to see our students continue to secure impressive grades such as these and all who wish to progress to university being able to do so.

"All our students completing their studies with us deserve this success. Credit must also go to the excellent work of our teaching staff and of course to parents for their constant support and encouragement."

In Market Drayton, students at the Grove College have been celebrating after every single one was accepted onto university courses while five have also secured high quality apprenticeships.

Headteacher Sonia Taylor said: "I am especially thrilled with these results and would like to congratulate every one of our students for their hard work and determination.

"I would also like to tank all staff who have shown tremendous dedication and commitment and of course all our parents who have supported their children in their studies."

A-level results at Bishop Heber High School was once again a cause for celebration amongst students, staff and parents, with almost 55% of all grades awarded being A*-B and an overall pass rate of 100%.

A-level pupils at Lucton School celebrate another year of excellent exam results. Half of all A-levels taken achieved A*to B grades with three-quarters at A* to C.

Head of sixth form, John Goode, praised his pupils' success, saying, "I am absolutely delighted. Our pupils have worked so hard and most are now heading to their first choice university, many to top Russell Group universities."

Ysgol Rhiwabon is also proud of the achievements.

There are some outstanding individual achievements which are a testament to the incredible amount of hard work put in by the students, their parents and teachers.

There was a 100% pass rate at the demanding Higher Welsh Baccalaureate qualification and 97% of students achieved higher grade passes.

Performance in all vocational subjects, where over half of the results were at Distinction or Distinction Star level.

Mr Alun Harding, Headteacher, said: "Having a well-managed sixth form means that we really know our students as individuals and are able to really tailor the courses they follow. The advice, guidance and support they receive helps our students' to ensure the highest chances of success.

"As I maintain, we don't set simple entry grades – we look at individuals; I think our results reflect this approach."

Some of the headline results at Lady Hawkins School were Jack Gillum, head boy, with 2 A*'s an A and a C; Natasha Davies with 2 A*'s and a C: and Gerogia Roberts with 2 A*'s and a C.

Headteacher Gary House said: "Congratulations to our Sixth Form students on achieving an excellent set of results, our applied subjects like Forensic Science have really caught students imagination and interest motivating them to succeed. Students, staff and parents have much to celebrate in this set of results."