GCSE RESULTS: Malmesbury School buck national trend and produce best ever results

More than of 30 per cent of total grades were A*/A and more than 75 per of pupils achieved the benchmark five A* to C grades, including in English and maths.

A total of 45 per cent also achieved the ‘academic’ English Baccalaureate.

Headteacher Tim Gilson said he was “delighted” for his pupils.

He said: “They have earned the results they deserve. They now enter the next exciting phase of their education here in our sixth form or at college.

“These results show the consistently outstanding teaching that our staff provide.

“For the past four years over 70 per cent of our students have achieved the benchmark five A* to C including English and maths.

“Students should be very proud of the progress that they have made since they started in year seven, there are many ways of measuring student success and whichever way you look at these results they are superb.”

Special congratulations go to Ali Cummings, Victoria Gordon, Emilia Harley, Grace Hart, Isaac McAdam, Alice Nelson and Lorcan Purser, who all achieved a clean sweep of A*/A grades this year.

Freya Dibble, 15, got six A*s, two As and two Bs.

She said she was “absolutely thrilled” with her results.

“Malmesbury School was so supportive,” she said.

“They really helped me through whole process. It was a nerve-racking time but they made sure we got through it.”

Amber Rice, 16, was “very happy” with her results and will be going on to Cirencester College to study horse care and biology.

She received a distinction star in horse care, As in science and home economics, and Bs in the rest of her exams apart from one D.

Her dream is to become an equine dental technician or equine physiotherapy.

She said Malmesbury prepared her well for the exams and she’ll miss the school.

“They were really helpful,” she said. “The revision evenings they put on were really good."

She said she'd miss the school.

"It kind of becomes your home, so it’ll be hard parting with it," she said.

Sophie Bedwell, left, with her proud mother Gale picking up her GCSE results

Sophie Bedwell, 16, was another pupil happy with her results.

She will be going to Southampton for sixth form college.

“There was all the support [at Malmesbury School] that you could have needed,” she said.

“Whenever you needed it, whether it was after school or just in between lessons, they were always happy to help.”

Sophie’s mother, Gale, said she was “very proud” of her daughter.

“She’s worked extremely hard, she deserves what she got,” she said.

“All the way through the school has been fantastic. I can’t praise it enough.”