“Excellent year” at St Patrick’s

Seventy-five per cent of the College’s GCSE students have achieved five or more GCSEs at grades A*-C, an increase of nine per cent on last year.

Mrs Magee said: “This is above the Northern Ireland average for similar schools and a clear indicator of successful ongoing school improvement, reflecting the strong commitment of the staff to ensuring that all pupils reach their full potential.”

Thirty-two St Patrick’s pupils are celebrating seven or more GCSEs at grades A* to C, while 19 have achieved eight or more at these grades. There has been particular success in Modern Languages, where 100% of candidates have achieved A*-C in French, Irish or Polish.

All candidates who took GCSE PE have also achieved at A*-C. A further four subject areas have seen A*-C performance of over 80%, while this figure rises above 95% for Art & Design and ICT.

Mrs Magee congratulated all of the school’s Year 12 students on their hard work and success. “These results are the culmination of a great deal of hard work on the parts of both students and teachers, and I congratulate each of the students, as well as their teachers. I would also like to thank the parents of the young people, for the encouragement and support they have provided,” she said.

“We are proud of the successes of all of our pupils, who between them have achieved 15 A* grades, 69 A’s and 162 B’s. These are excellent results from children who, in many cases, had enrolled in St Patrick’s College five years ago with their confidence severely dented by the Transfer procedure. I am sure their achievements will give them the confidence and encouragement to go onto further success at A level.

“In an excellent year for our Modern Languages, I would particularly like to recognise the achievement of many of our Polish students, 12 of whom have achieved either an A* or A grade in GCSE Polish, a qualification which will be very useful to them should they return to Poland to continue their studies or seek employment.”

Mrs Magee also praised other successes within the Year 12 group, particularly 20 students who have achieved Level 2 in Occupational Studies, the equivalent of two GCSEs at A*-C. Three students also gained Edexcel First Certificates in Agriculture, again equivalent to GCSE.

She said: “As a non-selective school, we celebrate success at all levels across the full range of ability. These are vocational courses, which our students access through the Northern Regional College, and they aim to broaden the educational experience of the young people, with a view to preparing them for further training or apprenticeships. I am delighted that these students have successfully embraced this opportunity, and I would like to thank the staff of the Northern Regional College for the partnership we enjoy, which is obviously benefiting our students.”