Canford outperforms nationally, regionally and sector wide at A Level 2024

Published by Canford School on Monday 19th of August 2024

Many congratulations to all our Upper Sixth Canfordians who have excelled in this year’s A Level examinations. 23% of all grades were at the top grade A* with over half of all grades, 53%, at A*/A, 82% at A*/B and 96% A*/C, with strong performances across arts, science and humanities subjects.

Once again Canford has significantly outperformed the national overall grade statistics which saw 9.3% of all grades at A*, 27.8% A*/A and 76% A*-C. Regionally Canford results were double those seen overall at A*/A across the South West and have also again outperformed the independent sector averages.
These results are testament to the hard work and commitment of this talented year group. Forty pupils gained straight A*/A grades, 12 with 3 or more A*s and a further 15 with at least 2A*/A grades. Breadth of opportunity is a hallmark of life at Canford, and like so many of our multi-talented pupils, these top performers took advantage of the many co-curricular options open to them, resulting in Army scholarships, Gold Duke of Edinburgh Awards, distinctions in Maths Olympiads, music diplomas and high level sporting achievements.

The vast majority of our leavers are heading to university with 82% of places at Russell Group/Sunday Times Top 12 institutions including eight confirmed places at Oxbridge and seven for the highly competitive courses in Medicine and Veterinary Science. Among the popular destinations this year are Oxford, Cambridge, Durham, Bristol, Exeter, Imperial College London, Edinburgh and St Andrew’s. A number of pupils are heading internationally, with offers for US colleges in New York, Dakota, Kentucky and the American University of Paris and there are also Canfordians moving on to Art Colleges, Drama School, apprenticeships and directly into the working world.

For those moving on to higher education, Canfordians will be reading a wide range of different courses – from traditional academic subjects across sciences, arts and humanities to vocational courses such as Aerospace Engineering, Real Estate, Journalism and Culture, Sports Rehabilitation, Costume for Theatre and Screen, Advertising and Marketing Management, Law and Architecture. Our vision is for every pupil to follow their chosen pathway ‘to explore, to express and to excel’ and our leavers have once again illustrated the success of this through the breadth of institutions, courses and industries applied for.

Examination results are only one part of the picture of the life of a Canfordian. Success takes many forms, and we celebrate and are proud of every individual pupil in this cohort. Their commitment to making a difference to their own lives, and to the lives of others, as stated in our school mission, has been demonstrated through their support for each other and for those in the wider world, taking part in some of the 72 different community partnership projects that Canford has links with locally, regionally and internationally.

Headmaster Ben Vessey commented:

“I congratulate all our Upper Sixth pupils on this fine set of results, enabling them to fulfil their ambitions and move on to the next stage of their lives. They have been a wonderful year group, truly embodying the Canford values of Purposeful Engagement, Humble Ambition, Gracious Leadership and Courageous Attitude in so many areas of school life, and I wish them all every success for their exciting futures ahead.”

Full results will be published on the school website in due course.