Our kids buck national trend

Powys pupils have bucked the national trend by enjoying an increase in GCSE passes, it has been confirmed today.

Almost seven out of 10 results (69.8%) are at grades A*-C and more than one in five (21.4%) are at the highest grades A*-A, maintaining the excellent performance of Powys schools in recent years.

Results at grades A*-B have increased substantially (by 3.2%) from 2011 and results at grades A*-C have increased by nearly 1%.

The percentage of grades A*-C in Powys is more than 4% higher than in Wales as a whole and the overall pass rate of grades A*-G in Powys has increased slightly to 99.3%, 0.6% higher than in Wales as a whole.

This year’s results at the highest grades A*-A at 21.4% are more than 2% higher than in Wales as a whole and the percentage of results at grades A*-B at 42.8% is more than 4% higher than in Wales.

The increase in performance at the highest grades in Powys is at odds with Wales as a whole where performance has fallen slightly when compared to 2011. Little change is expected in the overall figures when results from other Examination Boards are added as approximately 90% of examination entries are with WJEC.

These results maintain the high standards seen in previous years’ performance and remain consistently above the all-Wales averages. The overall pass rate in Powys at a little over 99% is also slightly higher than the corresponding figure for England. In addition, many pupils have also achieved equivalent qualifications in vocational subjects.

Stephen Rogers, Powys County Council’s Head of Schools, said: "Our warm congratulations go to all pupils for achieving such excellent results which demonstrate their great commitment and hard work.

"This is made possible by the support they receive from dedicated teaching and support staff in all our schools and also from their families."

Summary of GCSE grades 2009-2011

GCSE Grade Achieved

                        A*-A    A*-B    A*-C    A*-G
                        %       %       %       %
2012
Powys (WJEC)            21.4    42.8    69.8    99.3
Wales (All Boards)      19.2    38.5    65.4    98.7
2011
Powys (WJEC)            20.2    39.6    69.0    99.2
Wales (All Boards)      19.5    39.0    66.5    98.7
2010
Powys (WJEC)            20.9    40.6    69.1    99.3
Wales (All Boards)      19.2    38.0    66.4    98.7