Pupils in Lowton and Golborne were collecting GCSE exam results yesterday – with plenty of reasons to celebrate!
Here’s some of the many lovely pictures of the celebrations as young people discovered what they’d achieved – and made plans to head off to colleges locally to start their next chapter.
Golborne High
At Golborne High, Headteacher Alison Stott said: “Today marks the culmination of 5 years of dedication, effort, and unwavering support from everyone involved in guiding our Year 11 pupils through their examinations at Golborne High School.
“We are immensely proud of our pupils and it was our absolute pleasure to celebrate with them when the results were distributed this morning. The teamwork between staff, pupils and parents has led to the success that we have celebrated with our pupils today.
“These results have been achieved by the hard work and positivity that our Year 11 pupils have shown throughout their time at Golborne.
“I would like to thank our Year 11 pupils for the contribution they have made to Golborne High School over the last 5 years and for being a pleasure to work with. I would also like to thank the parents of Year 11 pupils for their support.
“Now, it is time to celebrate the achievements of our incredible pupils and for them to move onto the next stage of their journey with confidence and pride, knowing that they can succeed, whatever challenges life throws at them.
They will, however, forever be, part of the ‘Golborne Family’.”
Lowton High
At Lowton High, there were lots of high flying pupils again this year.
Over 50% of all grades were at least a strong pass (grade 5 or higher) and nearly 20% were at the highest grades.
In addition, more than 40% of students have made progress in the top 20% of all students in the country.
In addition to the great Year 11 results, the school also does one GCSE a year early in Religious Studies for most students. An amazing 40% got the highest grades (grades to 9) and a sensational 21 got grade 9s – a year early!
These outcomes build on the ongoing success of the school last year, when it achieved ‘Good’ in all areas when it was inspected in March 2023. The school’s reputation continues to be recognised with a full entry into its Year 7 starting in September, with nearly all of them putting the school as first choice.
Kieran Larkin, headteacher at the school since September 2020 said: “These results recognise the hard work, resilience, ambition and determination of our students. Their secondary school years could be remembered for the impact of the pandemic, but instead they leave us today where their memories will be made of their successes. They have shown that if you want to do well you will if you put the work in.
“We wish each of them the very best as they move on to the next chapter in their life. I want to pay particular tribute to our amazing staff team who have consistently gone above and beyond so that our students can achieve so well.”
Hope Academy
Raquel Ginju-Matras from Hope Academy
Hope Academy in Newton-le-Willows was also celebrating another year of exceptional GCSE and vocational results, reflecting the hard work and perseverance of students and the unwavering support of its staff and the community.
This year has seen remarkable achievements across all subjects, with the highest-ever percentage of students achieving strong passes in English and mathematics in the academy’s history.
There have been significant improvements in attainment and progress in English, maths and combined science. There has also been a continued strong performance in RE, computer science, art and photography as well as PE.
Many students will go on to study A-level or vocational courses at local sixth forms and colleges, while others will embark on apprenticeships.
From this year’s cohort, some of the top achievers include Mia Carrighar-Kearns, who secured grade 9s in RE and business studies, grade 8s in science, English language and maths, grade 7s in English literature, and geography, a grade 6 in statistics and grade 5s in Spanish and further maths, a distinction in sport studies.
Hope Academy student, Mia Carrighar-Kearns, will go on to the prestigous Shrewsbury School
Mia is part of the inspiring bursary programme with the Hope Opportunity Trust and The Royal Springboard Foundation. She has secured a place at the prestigious Shrewsbury School, where she will begin her A-levels in September.
Fellow bursary students have also gained places at top independent schools including Dylan Bowen-Knowles, who will be going to Durham School, Maada Komeh, who is heading to Prior Park College in Bath, Keira Marshall, who will be attending Rugby School and Hanna Smith, who is going to Queen Margaret’s School for Girls in York.
Amongst the other success stories is Jenna Fairclough, who achieved grade 9s in English literature and maths, grade 8s in English language, biology, chemistry, physics and RE, grade 7s in geography and further maths, a grade 6 in Spanish and a grade 5 in drama. Jenna will continue her studies at Liverpool Maths School.
Daniel Watt secured grade 9s in biology, RE and history, grade 8s in English literature and chemistry, grade 7s in English language, maths, physics, a grade 6 in drama and a grade 4 in Spanish. Daniel will also be heading to Winstanley College.
Hope Academy students Daniel Watt and Jenna Fairclough
Many students made outstanding progress in their GCSE examinations, achieving results above their targets, in some cases, this was by two or three grades. Congratulations to Ilinca Burcea, Jessica Dixon-Turner, Raquel Ginju-Matras, Evie Marsden, Sobini Mathan, Finlay Roberts, Adrian Szpiczak and Ava Tither.
Mrs Marie Adams, principal of Hope Academy, said: “Congratulations to our wonderful Year 11 students, their success is well-deserved as each and every one of them has worked tirelessly to get to this point.
“At Hope Academy, our team of teachers and support staff are dedicated to making a difference in the lives of our students by ‘serving one another through love’ and we do this by offering a wide, varied and challenging curriculum throughout all key stages. These results highlight the success of our approach and the bright futures that await our students.
Mrs Adams added: “With endless opportunities ahead, we wish them all the best for the next chapter of their lives.”
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