Provisional data shows that GCSE results in Liverpool have improved again – with the city above the national average in English and maths.
Information supplied by secondary schools in the city shows that, for English and maths combined, the percentage of pupils getting a grade 4 or higher – broadly similar to a C or above under the only scoring system – has gone up from 56.6 percent last year to 60.4 percent.
In English, 72.7% of students have achieved a grade 4 or higher, above the national average of 71.9%. And in maths, the city’s focus on driving up standards in numeracy appears to be paying dividends, with 66.1% getting a grade 4 or above, compared to 59.9% for the rest of the country.
Pupils supported by the city’s Community Languages Project – many who don’t have English as a first language – have also done well, with 84% of those who studied Arabic, Bengali, Chinese and Polish getting A* or A grades, and all getting above a C.
Assistant Mayor and Cabinet member for education, Cllr Nick Small, said: “Huge congratulations to all of our pupils for their amazing hard work and determination to do the best they possibly can, supported by their teachers and families.
“The changes made to the exams this year have been the biggest since O levels were scrapped almost 30 years ago, and it is always difficult for those students who are the first to take new style tests.
“The figures that we have got so far are really promising, and although it is difficult to make comparisons, it appears that we have seen improvements in those areas we know the grades are broadly similar.
“We have spent a lot of time working with schools on different initiatives such as the Liverpool Promise, City of Readers and Liverpool Counts to drive up standards and the quality of teaching in subjects, and I am pleased that this is being reflected in exam grades.
“But we are not complacent, and I am acutely aware that, like many other cities, we still have a way to go to make sure that our students achieve their full potential and it is not something that will be achieved overnight. We are focusing relentlessly on doing better every single year because it’s vital to the future economic success of our city.”
