Just five months after Ofsted commented about Wilmslow High School that 'most pupils attain the GCSE grade they should and the most able often make progress that is better than other nationally', the school's commitment to the pursuit of excellence for every student has been demonstrated by this summer's record breaking GCSE results.
With 81% of Wilmslow High School students gaining a grade 4 or above in English Language, 84% in English Literature and 86% in mathematics, performance in the key threshold of Level 2 English and mathematics has improved to 82%, up from 77% in 2017.
The performance of the highest attainers is especially strong with 28% of students gaining a grade 7 or above in English Language, 33% in English Literature, 31% in mathematics and 41% in a science GCSE.
Particularly impressive are the number of the new top grade 9s that have been awarded with 12 in English Language, 19 in English Literature, 25 in mathematics and 44 students achieving 1 or more in their science GCSEs. These figures represent performance that is at least double the national average.
Dr James Pullé, Headteacher, congratulated students on their achievements and thanked staff for their hard work: "We are absolutely delighted that our students and their families will have so much to celebrate in these record-breaking GCSE examination results for Wilmslow High School. This year, for the first time, 90% of the GCSE grades earned by our students are in the reformed qualifications with their more challenging subject content and the new 9-1 grading scale.
"The media is full of comment about how demanding the pace and scale of the changes have been for students and staff. This is therefore the moment to warmly congratulate our young people for demonstrating such impressive character - over a sustained period of time they have been determined to push performance beyond their personal bests. It is also the moment to thank the school staff for the dedication, determination and drive they demonstrate day-in-day-out in order to provide our students with so many opportunities to excel.
"Working together, staff, students and their families have achieved very highly and established strong foundations on which to build in the years ahead. Best wishes to all our students for the opportunities that will await them as they move onto the sixth form, a college or an apprenticeship."
Ms Ruth Powley, Deputy Headteacher, commented "We are incredibly proud of all of our students for their hard work and achievements. The vast majority of our students took full opportunity of the wide range of exam preparation opportunities that our staff offered in the run-up to the exams, and it is wonderful to see their efforts pay off."