It has been another record year at Norton Hill for GCSE results. The school saw students achieve the highest ever outcomes, with 74% of the cohort gaining five or more GCSEs at A*–C, including English and Maths (national 56%), with over a quarter of all grades at A*–A.
The school hall was full of smiling faces as eager students collected their results and celebrated some stunning successes across all subjects. As a specialist maths school, the results achieved in Mathematics were even better than the fantastic scores for 2014, with 85% of children gaining a C or above and 30% of all grades at A*–A. In Science, 93% of students gained a grade A*–C, which places Norton Hill in the top 10% of schools nationally. In English, 80% of students achieved a C grade or above, with French and German running close behind at 77% and 71%. In every subject, students have excelled and exceeded the national average.
Norton Hill School Headteacher, Alun Williams, said: ‘This set of results once again places Norton Hill amongst the best schools in the country and certainly the most successful in the local area by some margin. Students have worked incredibly hard to achieve these outcomes and the partnership between youngsters, staff and parents has been a real strength which has paid off.
“I am particularly proud of our achievements in the core, traditional subjects that are often more challenging for children than some of the softer options used to boost results in other schools. For example, over 40% of youngsters achieved success in the EBAC measure, (almost double the national rate) which represents the gold standard of academia.
“Students work extremely hard at Norton Hill, they are taught well by dedicated, talented staff and this is reflected in the outstanding results achieved. Well done to all the students in Year 11, you deserved the successes you’ve achieved.”
Deputy Headteacher, Gordon Green, added: ‘The STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Mathematics, etc) performed extremely well and places Norton Hill at the top of schools in the country for Sciences. This is excellent news for the Sixth Form at Norton Hill, as it means another bumper crop of scientists. The Midsomer Norton Sixth Form was expecting over 110 youngsters to start in Year 12 in September, studying either Biology, Chemistry or Physics. Brilliant news!”
Some of the top performers on the day include: Zoe Frechin-Pollard, 9A*s, 2As, John Parsons, 7A*s, 3As, 1B, Emily Lockyer, 4A*s, 7As, Thomas Hanney, 6A*s, 3As, 2Bs, Grace Taylor, 5A*s, 5As, 1B, Maizy Bates, 5A*s, 4As, 2Bs, Katie Barnard, 4A*s, 3As, 3Bs, Olivia Sheppard, 4A*s, 5As, 2Bs and Alexandra Stock, 4A*s, 5As, 2Bs.