Celebrations for East Riding A-level students - best results ever

Students across the East Riding are celebrating their exam success, as early indications show that all schools and academies have again improved their A-level results, which look set to be the best ever.

 The majority of East Riding schools have achieved their best ever A-level results this year.

It is only possible to directly compare this year’s A-level results to last year as the measures changed in 2016 and many exams also changed this year.

The new A-level league tables will not be published by the Government until January 2018 and will include both attainment and progress measures for A-level and separately for other level 3 qualifications including BTECs.

However, the results announced today suggest that East Riding sixth forms have maintained their successful improvement trend for the sixth year in a row.

In 2016, the average A-level grade achieved in both England and the East Riding was grade C and the average point score was 30. 

This year, early indications from school and academies are that East Riding results have improved by an average of half a grade per pupil, with an average grade of C-plus and an average point score of 34 – the best improvement on record.

The improved results this year include increases in both average points score and average grade.  The average point score has risen steadily in East Riding schools and academy sixth forms and is schools’ best ever result in 2017.

2016 saw the best-ever A-level progress in East Riding school and academy sixth forms and the East Riding is expected to do even better, relative to national data, when the new progress measures are published in January 2018.

All East Riding schools and academies are committed to achieving national top 20 per cent progress in their sixth forms by 2017 as part of the Sixth Form Charter agreed between schools and the local authority.

As a result of this year’s successes at A-level and their equivalents, many of the 1,200 young people in Y13 in East Riding school sixth forms will be moving on in September to the education or employment of their choice.

 Another 600 East Riding-resident students study A-levels in sixth form colleges in Hull, Selby and York and their progress will also be confirmed in January.

The national data showing the destinations of pupils from sixth forms, published for 2015, shows that 75 per cent of East Riding sixth form students with A-levels were in further or higher education, three per cent more than the national figure.

The proportion of young people with A-levels going into apprenticeships is also well above the national average.

Councillor Julie Abraham, East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s portfolio holder for children, young people and education, said: “It is encouraging to see that it  appears that students in the East Riding have done so well this year.

“With results like this they will be well prepared for whichever path they want to go down in their future careers.”