Morning rain was not enough to dampen the spirits of Exmouth Community College students who received their A level results today.

Morning rain was not enough to dampen the spirits of Exmouth Community College students who received their A level results today.

The students were celebrating along with staff as the school recorded a 95 per cent A2 pass rate, up from 93 per cent last year, and a record breaking 86 per cent pass rate at AS Level.

However, these figures were slightly down on the national average, which saw 97.8 per cent of students achieving at least an E grade.

College principal Tony Alexander said: “I am absolutely delighted with the improvement in results at both AS and A2 level which is a great credit to the hard work of Post 16 students, and a great tribute to the professionalism and dedication of the teaching staff.

Head of Post 16 Simon Tanner said: “I am delighted that the focus and energy the students and staff put in all year has resulted in this fantastic set of results, which create all sorts of opportunities both in and out of the College next year.”

Among the celebrating students was Rosie Williams, who was one of only two at the college to achieve two A* grades.

She said: “I needed these results to study medicine at Manchester, so I’m very pleased with them.”

With a hefty hike in university tuition fees set to take place next year, this year has seen a record number of applications to university, and Rosie said this was obvious when she applied.

“I think there’s been more competition this year. For one of my choices, Southampton, which I didn’t get on to, there were 19 people applying for every place, so it was very competitive.”

Another of the high achievers was Esther Waistell, who achieved two As and two Bs – a feat made all the more special as she celebrated her 18th birthday on results day.

She said: “I’ve got into Edinburgh to study French and Spanish, so I’m relieved and very happy. It’s the best birthday present I could have had.”

Despite the high grades achieved by some students, not all the day’s winners had straight As.

For AS student Keegan Ferreday, just passing was cause for celebration.

He said: “I took my AS levels last year and failed badly, but I retook them this year and the grades have gone right up.

“I’ve just got to push through A2 now, and then I’m debating going to university – which I wasn’t even thinking about before I opened this envelope.”

Among the students celebrating their A2 grades were Ben Askew, who achieved 2 A*s, Elena Holmes, who achieved an A* and three As, Sarah Coates with three As, Mark Green, Emily Coppin-Harris and Alex Hurlock who all achieved an A*, two As and a B, Rebecca Rankin who got two As and two Bs, and Sam McCracken who got two As and a B.

At AS level, Jacqueline Hughes achieved five As, Julian Ashwin, Abby Swain and Jamie Heavens got four As, Daisy O’Loughlin achieved three As and a B, Edward Pearcewith achieved two As and two Bs and Chris Luff picked up two As and a B.

Also celebrating were Beth Foxon and Eleanor Williams, who achieved A* grades in a one year A Level as well as A grades in their AS levels.

After the successes of Post 16, it will be the turn of Year 11 pupils to open their envelopes when GCSE results are released next Thursday.