GCSE results: The wait is over for ecstatic pupils at King James' in Knaresborough

Result envelopes were eagerly torn open today at King James's School in Knaresborough, as staff and pupils marked another round of strong GCSE results in the face of 'a challenging year.'
Kiren Gill , Lucy Cawkwell-Brown, and Emma Chatto,Kiren Gill , Lucy Cawkwell-Brown, and Emma Chatto,
Kiren Gill , Lucy Cawkwell-Brown, and Emma Chatto,

The main hall was filled as hundreds of students collected their results today (Thursday, August 23), which showed the school had continued to build the on the success of its A-level results published last week.

Lauren BurnhamLauren Burnham
Lauren Burnham

Among them were Luke Balbi and Ben Brennan, who were are among the few hundred students across the country to achieve the top grade of 9 in all of their subjects. 11 students also managed to achieve grades between 9 and 7, including Lauren Burnham, Emma Chatto, Matthew Ibbotson, Natalie Lines, Oriana Lioi, Anna Liptrott, Kate Quinn, Anna Senior and Madeleine Turner.

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Headteacher of King James School, Carl Sugden said “This has been a very challenging year for students and teachers as they try to get to grips with the new qualifications but we are delighted with the results. There have been a lot of happy students this morning, the majority of whom will be coming back into the Sixth Form here to study A Levels. The students knew that they were under pressure with the new qualifications and they worked very hard through the exam period.

"This year group have spent more time in the exam room than any previous generation of students. It is a real pleasure to see so many students this morning reflecting on that hard work and looking forward to the next stage in their education.”

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Luke Balbi said:"I am ecstatic, I wasn't quite sure how I had done but it actually went really well. Its been non-stop the whole year but it has definitely paid off. I remember it felt so hard when we were mid-way through our exams and still trying to cram in revision."

He added:"I really can't put it into words how I feel now seeing the results."

Ben Brennan said: "The school has helped me to get these results today and I am so grateful to my family who really supported me throughout, my brother Jack especially."

He added: "I want to be able to study economics at Oxford one day and I wanted to put the work in now to make this possible."

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Kate Quinn said: "It has been really hard over the year, I really wasn't sure I was going to pass biology but I just kept on going.

"I am really shocked and so pleased with my results, I didn't think I was going to be able to do it but I have the grades I need to be able to get into the sixth form now."

Lauren Burnham said: "I am feeling like this couldn't have gone any better today, and I am so pleased with my sciences results."

She added: "It has been so hard over the year, the night before my English Literature exam I found it difficult to sleep but my family helped me get through so much of this."