Celebrations for Oulder Hill pupils on GCSE results day

The whole school community at Oulder Hill Leadership Academy is celebrating their GCSE results after pupils sat exams for the first time since 2019.

Pupils have overcome two years of disruption to their education, following periods of lockdowns, self-isolation and illness, with 46% of pupils at the school achieving a ‘strong pass’ (grades 9-5) in English and maths, up from 35% in 2019.

School staff and parents have today been celebrating with pupils at the school as they progress onto the next stage of their education or training.

Zuzanna Filipiak received fantastic results with four grade 9s and six grade 8s. Zuzanna is going on to Rochdale Sixth Form College to study maths, chemistry and psychology.

Zuzanna said: “I feel very happy. My biggest challenge was time management and organising my revision. My advice to the new year 7s would be to read a lot!”

 

 

Fellow pupil Imaan Mahmood also came away delighted with her results, achieving four grade 9s and five grade 8s which secured her place at Rochdale Sixth Form College to study biology, chemistry and maths.

Imaan said: “I was hoping that I would be successful but I have exceeded my expectations. I am overjoyed. It is so important to put your head down from the day that you walk into school. It is honestly worth it in the end.”

 

 

With eight grade 9s and one grade 8, Abdul Afolabi will also be joining Rochdale Sixth Form College to study biology, chemistry and maths. He said: “I am very pleased and excited about my results. I now have many opportunities that I could only have dreamt about. My biggest challenge was staying motivated and focused right to the end.”

Louise Rees, acting headteacher at Oulder Hill Leadership Academy, said: “I would like to congratulate our fantastic pupils on their results, which we hope will be an important chapter in their journey towards realising their dream career.

“They have faced more disruption and uncertainty than we could ever foresee, so to see so many outstanding results despite these challenges makes me immensely proud.

“The best part of the day is seeing so many happy faces celebrating together, and the fact this is the first results day without restrictions for a few years made it even more special.”

Oulder Hill Leadership Academy is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 - 16 in Rochdale. The school joined Star Academies, one of the UK’s leading multi-academy trusts, in November 2021.