Oxford Academy staff and students congratulated as GCSE results soar

Alfie Rushen receives his results CELEBRATIONS are taking place at The Oxford Academy after a huge increase in the number of students achieving the Government's floor target in their GCSEs.

The Academy saw the number of students achieving five A* to C grades including English and Maths rise from 26 per cent in 2012 to 41 per cent in the 2013 results.

This represents an improvement of 50 per cent from last year and makes the academy the most improved school in Oxford. Anne Davey, Education Director for the Diocese of Oxford, said: "This is the encouraging news we were hoping for.

I am absolutely delighted for the students and staff.

We have worked hard with the senior leadership team and our co-sponsors and we are confident that attainment levels were rising.

We remain committed to working intensively with the Academy to support continued improvement in the future. " The Oxford Diocese, along with Oxford Brookes University and the Beecroft Foundation is one of the main sponsors of the Academy. David Brown, Executive Headteacher, said: "I congratulate students on their achievements and want to praise staff for the inordinate amount of hard work they have put into supporting students as they prepared for these exams.

I was confident we could raise standards and I am over the moon with these results.

We now have practical measures in place across the Academy to ensure that standards rise even more and this is also reflected in our Year 10 results.

I would also like to thank parents and carers for their continued support of The Oxford Academy.

It is in unison with students, parents, staff and our local community that we will continue to make such progress. "82 per cent of students achieved 5 or more A*-C grades, which is a 32 per cent increase on last year.

5 A*-C passes including English and Maths increased by an exceptional50 per cent to 39 per cent and students have achieved a 100 per cent pass rate of 1 A*-G.

Compared to national predictions for these students put forward by the Fisher Family Trust, The Oxford Academy has improved its predictedrate by 77%, demonstrating that it is making a significant difference to students' learning across the ability range. Four students have exceeded all expectations gaining 5 A*-A with a total of 35 students gaining at least one A* or A. Alfie Rushen, 15, was one of these students gaining two A*, one A, three Bs and four Cs.

Alfie commented; "This is my proudest achievement to date. I'm coming back to the 6 th form in September because I'd never get the support I have had anywhere else. I'll be studying Maths, Art, IT and Performing Arts.

I then hope to pursue a career in Graphics or IT. "Ema Begum, 16, also achieved one A* along with one A, two Bs and two Cs.

She said: "Staff here really pushed me to achieve my goals.

I want to go to university to do a degree that I like, probably science. I'll be doing Biology, Chemistry, Maths and Psychology A Levels. "When asked what advice she would give younger students she said: "If they are going to do something, do it properly, otherwise there is no point in doing it. I think The Academy is really good.

The teachers are always encouraging you and you have to take advantage of all of the support. "Students on vocational courses continue to excel and the top performing BTEC subjects include Applied Science, Health and Social Care, Sport and ICT. Liam Witherwick, 16, has a clear idea of what his future holds after gaining a Distinction in his Construction BTEC, passing his Applied Science and ICT BTECs and achieving two Bs in his Maths and Resistant Materials GCSEs. Liam said; "I'm going on to study construction in the 6 th form for two years then plan to go to university and my ambition is to become a site manager. I put in lots of effort to achieve my grades as have the staff - they supported me through around 200 hours of additional after school sessions just for Construction!"Former Olympic rowing cox and Science teacher at The Academy, Caroline O'Connor, had extra reason to celebrate this year's results.

Caroline said; "Since retiring from elite rowing, I now want to focus on my teaching career. I have been working closely with a group of students who have excelled themselves. Lee Davenport (16) and Bobby Boyce (15) are among this group and achieved seven A*-C GCSE equivalents. I want to make a real difference to students and the boys' results prove that hard work and determination, two of the attributes I certainly needed when coxing the Women's Eight at London 2012, pays off. In line with the Academy's long-term growth strategy, we are extremely pleased that not only have our students achieved the best results ever as The Academy, but also that the expected rates of progress are similarly impressive. Both English and Maths achieved 60% expected rate of progress, rising from 38% and 57% respectively last year. This demonstrates the Academy's commitment to the successes of each individual student. It is particularly pleasing to see strong results from our Year 10 students.

Cian McCormack, 15, took two GCSEs a year early and gained an A* with a 98. 5% pass mark in Maths and a B in Physics, showing that improvement also extends across year groups. He said; "Maths comes naturally to me and I guess I listened a bit more in class. I am hoping to get a football scholarship to play for Oxford United, but I am also considering doing my A levels and going to university. " When asked what advice he would give to younger students, Cian said: "Don't mess around in class. " He would recommend The Oxford Academy because he says that as behaviour has improved, everything else in the school has improved. "Head of Sixth Form, Katie Screaton, said: "We are delighted to be able to cater for every one of our Year 11 students in the 6th form this year.

The Oxford Academy will be making each student a post-16 offer following the release of these results.

This means a boost to our post-16 provision realising our continued strategy to grow the 6th form.

Furthermore, the number of students from the Academy who are accessing university has increased this year, showing that the Academy is making a real contribution to students' futures. "The Oxford Academy is also celebrating specific subject success.

Alongside our continued strengths in Maths and now English - experiencing a 70% rise to a 46% GCSE A*-C pass rate, Physics has been the most successful GCSE subject this year with a 70 per cent A*-C pass rate.

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