Pupils across Islington are celebrating today after they posted the borough’s best-ever GCSE results – and bucked the national trend for declining grades.

Provisional figures show 54 per cent of Year 11 students who picked up their marks this morning achieved the benchmark five A* to C grades including English and maths.

That represents a significant five per cent rise on last year’s 49 per cent rate – in a year when GCSE scores fell nationally for the first time ever, by 0.4 per cent.

Cllr Richard Watts, Islington Council’s executive member for children and young people, said: “Congratulations to all our GCSE students, whose hard work, along with that of their teachers, staff, parents and governors has paid off.

“Many of Islington’s schools have seen significant improvements in their results this year and I met lots of students today who can be proud of what they’ve achieved and were excited about plans for their future.

“Islington schools are continuing to offer young people a very good quality education, giving them the opportunities they need to succeed.”

Islington Council provides information and advice to school leavers who are unsure about their next steps, which can be found at www.islington.gov.uk/connexions or by calling 020 7527 7031.