GCSE Results Day 2023: All the results and celebration photos from across Derbyshire

Results at Allestree Woodlands School have increased on pre-pandemic standards with 73% of students achieving grade 4 or higher in both English and maths and 52% of pupils securing at least a grade 5 in both subjects. The broader achievement of students in other subjects is also reflected in 69% of the cohort achieving at least 5 GCSE passes, including English and maths, at grade 4 or higher.

In sciences, results are also up with 76% of Y 11 achieving the government benchmark of two passes and 57% securing at least two grade 5s in sciences. We are immensely proud of the hard work that has gone into making these achievements possible.

Sixteen-year-old Emily Simpson was delighted with six grades 9, three grades 8, and one grade 7 and particularly pleased with an 8 in computer science which she taught herself with the aid of YouTube videos.

Emily, who plans to sit A-Levels in maths, further maths, physics and design technology, said: “I wanted to do 10 GCSE subjects so I decided to self-teach computing at home. I didn’t have tutor, I just used text books and lots of YouTube videos so I am pretty pleased to have got an 8.”

Emily was thrilled to share her success with fellow pupil Rafa Travis, as the pair walked to school together every day. Rafa got eight grades 9 and a grade 8.

Rafa, 16, said: “I’m going to stay at the school for sixth form and do A-Levels in maths, further maths, physics and politics. I’m really pleased with my results but I’m keeping my options open as to what I do long term.”

Head teacher Gemma Penny said: “We are really delighted with how our year 11 students have performed this year with increases in attainment secured in a year where grade boundaries have been tightened up and exams have returned to pre-pandemic standards.

“Students have been attending additional sessions throughout their GCSE programme to build their knowledge and confidence following the period of disruption to their learning when they were in key stage 3.

“Their efforts and those of staff have paid off and now open doors to post 16 study and apprenticeships for them. As usual, we have our team on standby to support students on taking the right next steps now that they have results in their hands.

“But we’d like to congratulate all our students who are reaping the rewards of their hard work and wish them every success in the future whatever their paths.”

Around 150 students at Alvaston Moor Academy in Bracken’s Lane, Derby, were collecting their GCSE results today.

Among the stand-out performances was Anthony Okunnuga, who achieved 10 GCSEs including 8s in maths and further maths, despite having only arrived in the UK from Nigeria last November. Anthony, who is going on to sixth form to study maths, further maths and physics, plans on becoming an aeronautical engineer.

He said: “I’m very happy and pleased with my results.”

Anthony will be joined at sixth form by Kayva Patel, who achieved a top 8 score in maths and a 7 in further maths. The overall top scoring GCSE student at the school was Iara Santos, who was delighted with grades 7 in Portuguese, maths and French.

Iara said: “I’m speechless! It was worth it, all the stress, crying, studying and everything. It was all worth it!”

Iara is going on to study maths, economics and business.

Also very happy with her results was Hiba Nibouch, who achieved grades 7 for Italian and French and grades 6 for English language and literature.

Hiba, who is going on to study English language, criminology and psychology at sixth form, said: “I was nervous at first, but I’m proud of myself.I didn’t have that much confidence but I’m grateful that it’s over and done with!”

Andrew Jones, who came to the school to pick up his results with his mum, was ‘happy’ with his grades 5 and 6 as he is going on to sixth form provision. He said: “I’m happy I’m going to sixth form,” he said. “It was a bit stressful! But worth it.”

Academy principal Michelle Strong said: “We’re so proud of our Alvaston Moor Academy students today. They have had their education interrupted with Covid and yet they have still performed brilliantly. Some of our students have only recently arrived in the UK. It’s humbling to see how hard they have worked to achieve these results.”

The headteacher at Manor Academy congratulated students as they celebrated GCSE success today.

Top performances included Ralf Volujevics, who achieved four grades 9, three grades 8 , one 7 and one 6 , and Natalia Rees who received four grades 9, two grades 8, two grades 7 and one 6. Corey White secured five grades 9, one grade , one 7 and two grades 6. Amelia Hudson celebrated four grades 9, one grade 8, three grades 7 and a 6, while Leah Hyatt achieved five grades 8 and foiur grades 7.

Katrina Kerry, headteacher of Manor Academy, said: “At Manor we are delighted that our students’ hard work and determination has paid off with these results. Our students have done themselves, their community and our academy proud. This year’s results are a culmination of five years of ambition, teamwork and high-quality teaching; I would also like to recognise the outstanding work of our teachers and support staff.

“I am very proud to be the headteacher of The Manor Academy and these results reflect our school’s values and continuing improvement. I would like to wish all of our leavers the very best of luck in the future.”

Murray Park Community School, in Mickleover, welcomed pupils back to collect their results before heading off on the next step. The school recorded Grade 4 and above pass percentages of 72.5% and 60.1% in English and maths respectively.

Students have continued to build on progress from outcomes achieved in 2019, with figures following an upward trajectory of improvement. English and maths 4+ has improved to 57.3% and English and maths 5+ has improved to 35.8%, an increase of 2% and 7% from 2019 figures.

Among the pupils celebrating was Sabahat Ahmad who achieve eight grades 9 and two grades 8. He is now planning to continue his studies at Littleover Community School and then study medicine.

Sabahat said: “I’m very happy and grateful to my teachers for all the hard work they put in. I’m also very grateful to God. I didn’t put expectation on my results, I just prayed for whatever was best for me and I got these results and it’s turned out well. I don’t put expectations on myself as that would be unjust. I don’t know how we’re celebrating but I’m guessing I will get a treat.”

Summayan Rashid got three grades 9, four grades 8 and one 7 with a merit for engineering and is now planning to go into sixth form before studying medicine. She said: “I feel shocked, these results are better than I expected. I will be celebrating by eating chocolate. I haven’t told my parents my results yet but I think they will be very happy.”

Ashley Stanley,16, who got a 6 in every subject and is now heading to dance college in Leicester, said: “I’m so excited. I want a career in dancing and performing and I couldn’t be happier with my results. I haven’t told my mum yet but I know if I’m happy that she will be happy. I’m going to Frankie and Benny’s with friends to celebrate and then I will probably go shopping to treat myself.”

Ethan Jinno is heading to Rolls Royce for his apprenticeship. He received one 6, three grades 5, two grades 4, one 3 and one 2. He said: “I’m really excited about going to Rolls Royce, it will be different.”

Gia Sran achieved three grades 7, two grades 6 , one 5 and one 4. She is heading to Littleover Community School to study business, psychology and geography. She said: “I’m really happy, some of these grades are higher than expected. I’m excited to be going into sixth form.”

Eleanor Shakespeare is also heading to Littleover to study biology, psychology and PE. She achieved one 8, four grades 7, three grades 6 and one 5.

Head teacher Nicola Caley said: “I’m so proud of all the pupils receiving their results today. They have all worked extremely hard and should be very pleased with their results. I would like to wish them the best of luck for the future and I know they will do well in life. It’s a testament to the hard work of all Murray Park staff that our students will be able to move to the next stages of their life with a great set of exam results.”

Students and staff celebrated as the class of 2023 eagerly awaited their GCSE results at Tupton Hall School, part of Redhill Academy Trust.

Marcus Gupta, who did exceptionally well, achieving eight grades 9, one grade 7 and one grade , said: “I am really happy with my results. I will be joining Tupton Hall Sixth Form in September and will be studying A Levels in Maths, Further Maths, Physics and Computer Science. In the long term I’d like to go to University.

“The revision sessions in school were really useful to help me achieve these grades. There’s a variety of clubs and extra-curricular activities on offer, and I also enjoyed media club. It was really fun and nice to create. I enjoyed my time at Tupton Hall School, making friends and learning in a nice environment. Teachers are very supportive.”  

 Sienna Wing achieved one grade, three grades 8, three grade 7 and two grades , and will be studying A Levels in Psychology, Criminology, Sociology and Media Studies at Chesterfield College. While collecting her results, Sienna praised Tupton Hall School for having ‘good supportive staff’.

Gabby Auld, who celebrated one grade 9, four grades 8, two grades 7 and two grades 6, said: “I really enjoyed my P.E lessons, they helped to develop my interest in sport. I will go on to study P.E, Maths, English Language and Psychology at Tupton Hall Sixth Form and would love to work as a Golf Coach in the future.”

Gabby also aspires to go to university in America to further her studies, stating that staff at school helped her to realise this dream.

Alexander Wildman was happy with his results too as he earned six grades 9, one grade 8, one grade 7 and one grade 6. Alexander, who will return to the school’s sixth form in September, said: “Tupton Hall is a good school with great teachers who are supportive. They make sure that students reach their potential and get the grades they deserve.”

Hannah Sabin is one step closer to her ambition of working in medicine. She obtained an impressive grade 9, four grade 8s, two grade 7s, one grade 6 and one grade 5. She said: “I’m happy with my grades and I enjoyed my time at Tupton Hall School. The teachers are supportive and there’s a good atmosphere for learning. Chemistry was my favourite subject, and I will study it at A Level with Maths, Biology, Chemistry and Law. I chose Sixth Form because of the varied subjects on offer.”

Headteacher, Mr Andrew Knowles said: “We are pleased that so many of our students have the platform to now progress to the next stage of their lives. They have emerged from significant disruption to their secondary school education to achieve qualifications that reflect their hard work and commitment to their learning.

“All of our students should be congratulated for their resilience, courage and achievements during this unprecedented period of time. I am thankful to the staff and supportive parents and families who have supported them and on behalf of the school community wish them future success.”

Students at Lees Brook Academy, in Chaddesden, celebrated their GCSE results today, as their proud headteacher Clare Watson, watched on. She was pleased with the results achieved by the students, particularly as this was the first set of results where grade boundaries returned to pre-pandemic levels.

She said: “We are so proud of our students here at Lees Brook. They have demonstrated hard work, resilience and tenacity throughout a challenging educational journey due to COVID. They have done themselves proud and we wish them all the best in their future endeavours.”

One of the first students through the door was Toby Sullivan, 16, of Oakwood. He was delighted to achieve a double grade 9 in Science and was quick to pay credit to the hard work of his teachers.

He said: “There were lots of extra revision classes put on by the teachers after school to help us catch up with things we had missed. I’m so pleased with my results – I had to work really hard and complete lots of revision. I felt quite good after the exams, but I feel so much better now I have got my grades.”

Toby is going on to study his A Levels at Allestree Woodlands School and hopes to move into an engineering or computing career.

Another student who couldn’t stop smiling was Jamie Hallett, 16, of Chaddesden. He was over the moon with a top grade 9 in Maths and his grade 8 in German.

Jamie said: “I’m absolutely ecstatic. I physically can’t tell you how many hours I spent working for these exams. It’s amazing to get such good results. And I can’t pay enough credit to the teachers for getting us through COVID. They were in constant touch through phone calls and then helped us adapt back into the school environment. All this happened while they changed Trusts as well – they were phenomenal.”

Jamie is going on to study A Level Physics, Maths and German at Bilborough College.

Nikita Haines, 16, of Oakwood, was doubly pleased to get a great set of GCSE results. She moved schools in Year 10 and had to cope with moving into a strange environment as well as her exams.

She said: “I literally knew no one in the school when I moved here, so I had to cope with making new friends and learning my way around as well as preparing for my GCSEs. The school were really flexible as I had studied different texts in English Literature and was taking Spanish – even though Lees Brook had no Spanish teachers! They gave me time and space, and helped with resources so I could still achieve a grade 7 in Spanish.”

Nikita admitted that she had to be really self-motivated and is hoping to continue her Spanish studies at Bilborough College.

One student who confessed to having many sleepless nights before he got his results was Zamwa Mahammed, 16, of Normanton.

He said: “I’m really pleased – I got three top grade 9 and had to work hard and stay determined. I had a bit of a wake-up call in Year 10 when I got a poor result in one of my Maths assessments. I resolved then to put away electronic devices and concentrate on my work when revising. It’s really paid off as I am now going to Rolls-Royce for a Level 3 apprenticeship as a Maintenance Engineer working on nuclear submarines.”

Celebrations are underway at Friesland School, part of The Two Counties Trust, as students collect their GCSE grades today. Students, staff and families are joining together to mark the accomplishments of all the students, who have demonstrated their hard work and commitment to their studies.

Top results included Ben Lihou, who secured seen Grades 9 and three Grades 8 and Ruchi Kaur whith seven Grades 9, one 8 and two Grades 7. Niamh Byrne celebrated five Grades 9, four Grades 8 and one , while Daniel Dalby received five Grades 9, one Distinction*, one Distinction, two Grades 8 and one 7.

Mr Craig Patterson, headteacher at Friesland School, said: “Congratulations to all our Year 11 students receiving their results today. I would like to thank our families for their support and recognise the hard work and commitment of all our students during their time at Friesland and especially throughout Y11 and the intense exam period.

“As a school we are so proud of what the Class of 2023 has achieved, with their results today the culmination of five years of ambition, resilience and commitment. I would also like to recognise the hard work and teamwork shown by all the staff at Friesland in supporting our students to be successful.

“I would like to wish all of our leavers the absolute best for the future, whatever they choose to do next, and look forward to welcoming many back to our sixth form in September.”

After much hard work studying and preparing, pupils at Springwell Community College have been excitedly collecting a set of fantastic GCSE results throught the morning.

Beth Skidmore, achieved one of the top results at the school as she secured grade 9 in maths, physics, chemistry, biology and art along with four GCSEs at Grade 8. Ethan Stockton also achieved five GCSEs at Grade 9, in maths, additional maths, physics, chemistry and biology, along with a Grade 8 in geography.

Holly Deakin and Lacy Taylor, Luke Cousins are celebrating great results as they all secured one Grade 9 and one Distinction*. Elena Thompson heard good news as weel, as she received three Grades and one Distinction*.

Ian Wingfield, headteacher at Springwell Community College, said: “Many congratulations to all of our students receiving their results today. They deserve this success due to the many hours they spent preparing and the mature approach they have shown to their examinations.

“I would like to thank families for supporting their children through some of the nationally challenging times we experienced during their five years with us. The tireless work our teachers and support staff have put in to preparing the students is also recognised and very much appreciated. They join me in wishing all of our leavers the very best for their next steps and we look forward to seeing what they will achieve in the future.”

Dronfield Henry Fanshawe School joined the celbrations today as the headteacher praised effort from both students and staff.

Martyn Cooper, the headteacher at Dronfield Henry Fanshawe School said: “We are celebrating another pleasing set of GCSE results that are the outcome of a tremendous amount of effort from students and staff. This cohort was significantly impacted on by the pandemic and to say they have achieved as well as they have, matching performances from before Covid, is testament to their dedication and commitment. We are very proud of them and wish them all the best for the future.”

Heritage High School in Clowne has celebrated impressive success as well - with one of the students, Iona Fisher achieving a grade 9 in all of her GCSE subjects.

Matthew Webster has achieved top grades across all nine of his GCSEs including grade 9 in Maths and a grade 8 in French. He is moving on to Mercia Collegiate college to study A levels in Maths, Further Maths, Physics and Computer Science.

Abi Haslam achieved a grade 8 in Spanish, Biology and Maths and a grade 7 in Dance. Abi moves on to fulfilling her dream at the prestigious Kate Simmons Dance school, one of the UKs leading and most respected providers.

Deb Elsdon, Headteacher at Heritage High School, said: “I am very proud of the students’ and staff’s effort over the last 12 months and the results they have been able to achieve. I am delighted that students are going onto the next steps of their careers.”