There were smiles, hugs and a few nervous moments at Dormers Wells High School on GCSE results day as students arrived bright and early to collect their grades.
Joined by proud parents, siblings and other family members, pupils gathered in the school hall before opening their results envelopes. Groups of friends then flooded outside to celebrate, share their results, and talk about their next steps.
With sixth form, college and future careers already in sight, many were eager to share their plans for the years ahead.
You can read what some of them told us below, and see a gallery of some photos at the bottom of the story.
And come back to Around Ealing website tomorrow to see more results and reaction from schools across the borough, as they become available.
Top grades and ambitious plans
Most students take between 8 and 11 GCSEs. Grades are awarded on a scale of 9 to 1, with 9 the highest. Grades 9, 8 and 7 are similar to the old A* and A grades, while a grade 4 is considered a pass.
Among the 16-year-old celebrating was Ameer Alwakeel, who achieved six grade 9s and four grade 8s.
“I did put the work in,” he said. “French was the one I wasn’t expecting to get an 8 in, I’m really pleased.”
Ameer plans to study maths, further maths, physics and chemistry at A-level.
Riddhi Kantilal achieved six grade 9s, three grade 8s and one grade 7.
“I was really worried about some of my grades, but I didn’t do as badly as I thought,” she said.
Riddhi plans to study maths, further maths and computing at A-level and hopes to become a quantitative analyst in the finance sector.
Looking ahead
For Kashish Rahela, results day was about achieving her personal goals.
“I passed everything and got 5s in all my subjects,” she said.
Kashish plans to stay on in sixth form and study a BTEC in business or finance.
“I’m really interested in it. I’m very happy. Hopefully I’ll be celebrating later and going out somewhere.”
Rameen Mbarak, was delighted with her results, including a grade 8 in drama and now hopes to study a media BTEC.
“I think I did well,” she said. “Before the exams I thought a grade 4 would be my lowest result, but I did surprisingly well.”
Temani Lericke was also pleased with his results, including grade 6s in geography, maths, drama and science. He plans to study media at Global Academy, a specialist media-focused college, as he works towards his ambition of becoming a broadcaster.
Future plans
Student Gurjot Singh achieved a string of grade 6s and is already looking beyond sixth form, with hopes of pursuing a degree apprenticeship.
He said: “You can study and work at the same time. I’d like to do something in business or real estate.”
Leela Danee achieved grade 9s in English language, sociology and history. She also gained grade 8s in biology, physics and English literature, grade 7s in several other subjects and a grade 6 in Spanish.
“I studied hard,” she said.
Leela plans to take A-levels and is considering maths, sociology and economics. She hopes to pursue a career in finance.
Meanwhile, Avneet Kaur said she was pleased overall with her results.
“I think I did pretty good,” she said. “One extra subject was a bit disappointing, but apart from that I’m happy.”
Her top result was a grade 9 and she hopes to study medicine in the future.
“My parents will be pleased,” she said. “I haven’t told them yet. I’ll tell them when I get home.”
‘An open door to success’
Headteacher Róisín Walsh said: “We are so proud of our students’ exceptional progress and outcomes. The hard work and determination of our staff and students have made these results possible. Our motto at Dormers Wells is ‘an open door to success’ and we have done that again this year for our young people.
“We are very proud of everything they have achieved.”
For many students, the results marked the end of years of hard work and the beginning of an exciting new chapter as they prepare for sixth form, college and future careers.
