King’s Ely students celebrate fantastic A-level results

Hardworking King’s Ely students have once again achieved places at their first-choice universities and institutions having gained a stellar set of A-level grades.

Teachers and staff at King’s Ely Sixth Form are especially proud of the Year 13 cohort’s results, since COVID measures during their GCSE year meant that it was their first time sitting public examinations.

This year, a fifth of A-Level results achieved at King’s Ely are the top A* grade, almost half are A*-A, and three-quarters are grades A*-B. The overall pass rate is 99 %. Almost all candidates aiming for university this year gained places at their first-choice institutions.

These results not only reflect the 94 students’ determination and resilience, but also their teachers’ and mentors’ expertise and commitment for them to succeed. As a marker of their all-round, enriched education, King’s Ely pupils will be going on to study subjects as diverse as Engineering to Acting, and Medicine to Fashion Design – at universities and institutions, not just in the UK, but across the globe.

Jonathan Shaw, Head of King’s Ely Senior, said: “We are extremely proud of our Year 13s, who have achieved some excellent A-Level grades. Results Day is always approached with a little trepidation, but for this year’s cohort there was the additional pressure of sitting public exams for the first time, due to the cancellation of their GCSE exams in 2021. We are therefore particularly delighted with today’s results. Many of our students have exceeded their own personal expectations. Above all, they are a delightful cohort who will leave King’s Ely with the character, confidence, and sense of responsibility to make a difference wherever they go next. Congratulations to our pupils for their hard work and determination, to our teachers for their preparation and guidance, and to our parents for their unwavering support.”

All three King’s Ely students holding Oxbridge offers achieved the top grades to take up their places this year – Alice Wallace at St Hilda’s, Oxford to study Classical Archaeology and Ancient History, Ben Collier at Peterhouse, Cambridge to study Medicine, and PiaoPiao Li to study Philosophy at Magdalene, Cambridge.

Twenty-three students achieved all A*-A grades – Thomas Bateman, William Biggs, Thomas Coates, Ben Collier, Joseph Coppin, Elliot Dickson, Georgia Gordon, Finlay Griffiths, Freddie Hills, Jonathan Iles, Fidel Lau, PiaoPiao Li, Alexandra Marshall, Connor Marshall, Daniel Millard, Emily Morris, Lauren Peck, Sophia Peters, James Schoenberg, Kathryn Snell, Eloise Suiter, Alice Wallace, and Haoxuan Xu.

Alice Wallace, who achieved three A* grades, has been at King’s Ely since joining Nursery in 2008. She said: “I am so pleased with my results! I did work hard, but it still feels quite surreal to have got three A*s. I have been at King’s for fifteen years so there is so much I am going to miss about the school. King’s has such an infectious spirit and everyone is so supportive and encouraging of each other.”

Thomas Bateman, who also achieved three A* grades, is one of only twenty-eight students out of around four-thousand applicants to secure a place at the Manchester School of Theatre to study Acting. Thomas, who joined King’s Ely Prep in Year 3, said: “I am so happy with my grades, and so excited for Manchester! I aspire to be a professional actor and this dream is now a step closer to becoming a reality, thanks to the huge amount of support I have received throughout my years at King’s. Everyone here is incredible, especially the Drama Department. I would not be who I am today without King’s.”

William Biggs also joined King’s Ely Prep in Year 3. He achieved three A*s and an A, and will be studying Natural Sciences at the University of Bath. William said: “I feel like I did put in a lot of effort and hard work, but I still feel incredibly lucky to achieve grades as high as I have. I am not entirely sure what I want to do career-wise yet, but I think it will probably be in scientific research. King’s is such a nurturing and enriching place to study. The extra-curricular scene here is huge, which I think is important. I feel that the school has provided me with everything I need to flourish.”

As well as offering almost thirty different A-Level courses, King’s Ely Sixth Form also enables pupils to study vocational Level 3 Diploma qualifications in Business Studies, and Food and Nutrition. This year, eleven students completed the two-year Level 3 Diploma in Business Studies, achieving five Distinction* and six Distinction grades. Two Year 12 pupils also completed the one-year course and achieved Distinctions.

Approximately a quarter of this year’s Year 13 cohort also completed Extended Project Qualifications (EPQs) in addition to their A-Level subjects, which are equivalent to 50% of an A-Level. Almost half of the grades achieved were A*, and around three-quarters of grades were A*-A.

John Attwater, Principal of King’s Ely, said: “This is a challenging year for students with much more competition for university places and less latitude in A-Level grades than we have seen since 2019. In this national context, it is great to see such all-round success, both among the academic high-fliers and also the exciting options achieved by those who were most disrupted or affected by COVID lockdowns during their GCSE years.”

Interested in finding out more about King’s Ely Sixth Form? A dedicated Sixth Form Open Event is taking place at the Old Palace on Saturday 7th October. To book your place, please call Admissions on (01353) 660707 or visit: www.kingsely.org