The headteacher of a Dalston Academy says her kids have done “brilliantly” after 73 per cent of pupils gained at least three A* to C grades in their A-levels.

The bucketing rain didn’t stop students at The Petchey Academy, in Shacklewell Lane, from coming into school early this morning to find out how they scored in their end of school exams.

Olivia Cole, the headteacher, highlighted that more that 68pc of kids scored three A*s to Bs, or equivalent passes.

She added: “I’m feeling very pleased. The students put in such hard work and a lot of them have faced really significant challenges in their lives but they have done brilliantly.”

Ms Cole, who has been running the school since 2010, welcomed the variety of routes her pupils are taking and said there is a good mix between pupils pursuing degrees versus apprenticeships.

She added: “It’s definitely a changing world and it’s very exciting. We work very closely with a charity called Career Ready which supports students all the way through school, where they go to companies like Santander and develop skills and an understanding of going to work in the morning.”

This is only the second cohort of school leavers to sit the new A-level exams, as changes started by former education secretary, Michael Gove, mean there are no longer As-Level tests in year 12.

When asked about the new system, Ms Coles conceded the change has been “challenging” and said it has particularly affected bachelor of technology students (B Tech).

But she said 11 of the school’s B Tech students still achieved three or more A* to A grades at distinction level.

Last year some 15,000 students saw their A-level grades change after schools paid £30 or more for papers to be remarked.

When asked whether the current system is fair, Ms Coles said: “Schools like ours with limited resources can’t afford to put all our students in for a remark if they haven’t got the results they want.”

My Big Career and Hackney Council workers were on site helping kids get uni places through clearing.