Putney GCSE Students Overcome Adversity to Excel

Many exceptional performances seen at schools in the area

A Putney High School student reacts to her results. Picture: PHS

August 23, 2024

Already in a cohort which had to face up to some unprecedented challenges, some students who took their GCSEs in Putney schools had to face a number of additional obstacles to success.

Despite this, there have been a number of outstanding performances and high grades despite a tougher marking environment than seen in previous years.

At Ark Putney Academy, forty eight percent of the school’s students achieved grades 9-5 and 70% of students achieved a 4 and above in English and Maths this year.

The school was particularly proud of exceptional outcomes for students with English as an additional language.

Year 11 student, Daria Apruda, joined the school from Ukraine in May last year and, in addition to navigating the challenges of being a refugee in the UK, she quickly had to catch up on a year of GCSE content in a language that was not her own. Nevertheless, she managed to get one grade 9, three grade 7s, one grade 8, one grade 6 and one grade 5. She said, “If I have a goal, I will do everything I can to reach it. My Maths teacher really pushed me through offering loads of amazing interventions – I went from a 5 to a 7 in a year. My long-term aspiration is to work in scientific research, and I have chosen to studying biology, psychology and geography at Ark Putney sixth form – I can’t wait.”

Other individual successes included Kashmala Khan who achieved five grade 9s, one grade 8 and four grade 7s, and will be joining the sixth form in September to study biology, chemistry, psychology and sociology.

She will also be the recipient of the Ark bursary of £500 for students that demonstrate academic excellence at GCSE. Kashamala, whose first language is Urdu said, "My self-belief really saw me through some of the trickier times, and my brother really helped me too. I am hoping to pursue medicine and really looking forward to getting some clinical placements in sixth form.”

Sofia Anuchina is celebrating one grade 9, four grade 8s and one grade 7. She said, “Work hard and believe in yourself, it truly pays off. I am off to study economics, psychology and maths A Level and I am passionate about going to university."

Kristal Campbell joined the school in January of Year 10 from Jamaica and immediately set to work on bridging the gap. This enabled her to get seven GCSEs at 4 and above and is looking forward to moving onto an Engineering T Level in September. She said, “In order to catch up I was asking for extra work and my head of year was really supportive. I chose to do a T Level in Mechanical Engineering because I wanted to capitalise on workplace experiences rather than full time classroom learning. I think it’s really important that I pass the message on to any other females aspiring to do a T Level in a male dominated industry not to care what people say – there are so many out there!”

Cear Ghafori achieved one grade 9, three grade 8s, one grade 7 and two grades 6s and will start in the sixth form next month. His first languages are Farsi and Pashto. “It’s never late to start – when I first came to the UK, I felt so overwhelmed by everything. My advice for anyone in a similar situation is to approach tasks slowly until you feel confidence growing. I can’t wait to join the sixth form – I am really keen to attend uni residentials and explore courses.”

Daria Apruda (left) joined Ark Putney from Ukraine just over a year ago and Cear Ghafori is heading for the school's sixth form

Principal Alison Downey said, “We are really proud of the GCSE results across the board. Our EAL students performed well, overcoming language and cultural barriers, sometimes in a relatively short period of time. In addition to this, our students with Educational Health Care Plans and our High Prior Attainers have also achieved excellent results. This reflects the hard work of students and the staff who serve our diverse community.”

Ark Putney Academy will be hosting open days on the following dates:
• Open Evening running Monday 23 September 17:00 – 19:30
• Open Mornings running Monday 23 September – Thursday 26 September from 09:00 – 10:30.

At Putney High School nearly half of all entries received the top 9 grades and for the second year running 15% of the year group achieved a straight run of at least 9 grade 9s.

There were high scoring subjects across the disciplines from French with 78% grade 9s to PE and English Literature with 80% and 60% respectively.

In addition, a broad range of subjects saw at least half the year group achieve grade 9 including Maths and Computer Science, as well as History and Religious Studies.

The results follow last week’s record-breaking A Level results and once again, there are strong performances across all three sciences. Chemistry saw 43% of results at grade 9, with 45% for Physics and 43% for Biology.

With discussion in the national press about a downturn in language learning, Putney’s many linguists have bucked the trend with excellent results not just in French, Italian with 78% and 82% grade 9s respectively, Greek at 40% and German and Latin both at 42% also showed the strength in these subjects,.

Putney High School pupils with their GCSE results

Head Jo Sharrock said, “It is wonderful to see our Year 11 rewarded with such fantastic results and doing so well in subjects across the board. There were some very eager faces arriving early at school today and they quickly turned into very happy faces upon receiving their results. They should be enormously proud of their achievements. As indeed are we!

“I look forward to seeing them back in September to begin their Sixth Form A Level studies.”

Cllr Kate Stock, Wandsworth Council Cabinet Member for Children said, “You've worked incredibly hard, and I hope you're proud of all you've achieved. Whatever the outcome, remember that there are many paths to success, and we're here to support you every step of the way. Good luck!”

21.8% of entries across the UK were awarded grade 7 or above, the equivalent of an A grade under the old system which is still used in Northern Ireland and Wales, down slightly on last year but above the level seen in 2019.

The proportion of entries getting at least a 4 or a C, which is deemed to be a passing grade, fell from 68.2 per cent last year to 67.6 per cent this year.

The results show growing inequalities across the country with the gap between north and south and private and state schools widening further. 48.4 per cent of private school entries scored a grade 7 and above compared to 19.4 per cent of those at comprehensive schools.

In London 28.5% of exams were graded at least at a grade 7.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said, “These pupils have shown remarkable resilience and determination, defying unprecedented disruption throughout the pandemic, Raac and strike action.”