Further exam success for Warminster School pupils
Warminster School's GCSE pupils have completed a summer of exam success by performing strongly in the latest round of the new format GCSE exams, championed by the former education secretary, Michael Gove. The new GCSEs are considered to be much tougher than their predecessors and results nationally were expected to be “volatile”.
Of particular note is the Warminster cohort's performance in the key core subjects of English and Mathematics where the School has seen a year on year improvement and this year pupils have achieved a 95% pass rate in both Mathematics and English Literature.
In Mathematics GCSE almost 1 in 3 pupils achieved an A* or A grade. To further challenge the top pupils, an additional and very demanding Further Mathematics certificate was included in the curriculum for the first time this year. We are absolutely thrilled with the pupils' response, with over 35% achieving A*/A, including three gaining A* with distinction. Senior Tutor Mark Sully, who is also Head of Mathematics, said “We are delighted with the performance of our pupils, as our aim is to always stretch and challenge all pupils to fulfil their potential.”
In English Literature almost 50% of pupils gained an A* or A grade. This is against a backdrop of national concern about the disparity of performance in the subject.
While many pupils exceeded expectations, there were some outstanding individual performances: Tom Stanton, James Arter,Jannike Smye and Amedeo Grelli recorded 22 A* and 17 A grades between them. We look forward to welcoming these and many other talented former Year 11 pupils who will now start the A Level or International Baccalaureate Programme at Warminster.
Headmaster Mark Mortimer commented: “As with the School's recent A Level results, I am particularly pleased by the fact that the majority of the boys and girls have achieved their aspirational grades. What matters to me is that they have given 100%, been challenged and stretched by their teachers and done the very best they could have. That said, I am also very pleased by the School's strong performance, particularly in the context of an unsettled exam landscape, at the top end in core academic subjects such as Maths, English and Science.”