Petchey Academy boys bucked a national trend by outperforming the girls in their GCSE results in most areas, the school has announced.

A total of 44 grades 8 and 9 were awarded across English and maths, with 12 students achieving grade 9 in both. Seven students achieved 10 or more GCSEs at the top grades 9-7, while 10per cent of the year group achieved seven or more GCSEs at grades 9-7.

A school spokesperson said: “We’re extremely pleased with our results this year as our students have not only outperformed the national average in terms of the number of students achieving 4 or more GCSEs at grades 4 and above, but we have also exceeded last year’s results in almost all areas too.

“The changes to the GCSEs have made it a challenging year for students and teaching staff alike which makes our success even more pleasing.

“In a reversal to previous years, and the national trend, our boys have performed slightly better than the girls in almost all subjects which we’re extremely proud of. It’s also brilliant to see all three sciences performing so well, and more than a fifth of students achieving grade 7 or above in maths.”