Delighted staff and pupils at Abbeyfield School in Chippenham are celebrating the best GCSE results since the school opened.

This year’s results saw a 100 per cent overall pass rate, with 70 per cent of students achieving five or more A* to C grades.

All students sitting exams in the school’s specialist subjects of business, communication studies and ICT gained A* to C grades, as well as those studying the three sciences, art and design and statistics.

Among the results was Linda Irons, who gained 11 A*s and 3As and will stay at the school’s sixth form to study maths, further maths, physics and music.

She said: “I am delighted. I did not think I had done this well in some of the subjects, so I am really pleased.

“The exams were different to what I expected and one was very different to the mock exam so I did not really know how I had done.

“I am hoping to go to university after sixth form and my brother is at Cambridge so I have some competition.”

Also pleased with her results was Amy Urch, who gained eight A*s.

“I am really proud of these grades,” she said. “I worked hard and I think you get the grades you deserve – if you put the work in, you will do well.

“I am going to study biology, chemistry, geography and English literature at sixth form, but I am not sure where I will go yet.”

Headteacher Trish Shubrook admitted to feeling anxious about the results, but was more than pleased with the students’ achievements.

“I am always anxious before results day,” she said. “It is just so important to all of us. We know how important it is to the children, but it is really important to us too.

“We are a new school so we need to show that we can get our students through their exams. These are our best results yet and show how the school is going from strength to strength.”