GCSE Results: The Urswick School

One Urswick pupil spent a 16th birthday she will never forget today, as she picked up a bumper set of GCSE exam results.

Khadijat Lawal, who chalked up an impressive 4As and 4Bs, said: “I’m excited and happy I passed, and it’s a good birthday present as well.

“I will always remember this day – I didn’t know I had done this well.”

She is throwing a party with all her friends to celebrate the results, and hopes to progress on to Barking Football Academy for A-levels, to pursue her love of soccer.

“I can express myself when I’m playing football, and if I’m down I can go and play it,” she said.

Students waited excitedly outside The Urswick School in Paragon Road this morning, as they prepared to open their GCSE results, and the school as a whole is celebrating as 50 per cent of the year group achieved five or more A* to C grades including English and maths - an improvement of 12 per cent on last year’s results.

Headteacher Richard Brown said: “The national picture is of a decline in results, so to achieve an increase has been a great success for the school.

“As ever it’s about hard work and good teaching, and that leads to the sort of success that youngsters have achieved today.

“It what teachers are in teaching for, to help students get the successful outcomes and to help them achieve their dreams and ambitions, it’s what motivates us year in year out and generation after generation.

“There is still a glass ceiling in this country, and we help them go on and smash through it.”

Amongst the highest achievers was deputy head boy John Herbert, 16, who clocked up three A*s, 5As and 3 Bs.

“I was excited, there were some subjects I was shaking on, but when I opened the results it was better than I expected,” he said.

He wants to study computer science with maths at a Russell Group university after attending the school’s sixth form.

“I base this on what I like doing and seeing as I spend a lot of time on my computer, I want to have an inside view into how they work and how they are made,” he explained.

“Tech is up and coming and I want to be involved in helping tech develop in the future.”

Deputy head girl Chloe Morris, was also pleased with her two As, two Bs and three Cs.

“I was pretty glad with myself, I felt proud,” she said.

“I worked hard and was doing revision until 10pm every night, even at weekends.”

She is staying on for the sixth form too, and wants to be a primary school teacher eventually.

And Joshua Adjei was delighted with his three A*s, four As and four Bs.

“I can’t complain but it’s definitely been harder that what I thought it would be, overall I’m happy,” he said.

“I’m planning to stay at the sixth form because I already know the teachers, so they can push me. I like the environment, the way they support you they give you a helping hand, it’s about determination.”