Results Day 2021: East London state school gets more pupils to Oxbridge than ETON

38

View
comments

Fifty-five teenagers at an East London state school today got the A-level grades needed for them to study at Oxbridge – seven more than the offers made to students at the prestigious Eton College.  

The majority of pupils at Newham’s Brampton Manor Academy are from ethnic minority backgrounds, in receipt of free school meals or will be the first in their family to attend university.

Sam Dobin, Brampton’s sixth form director, said he was ‘delighted’ that 55 of its students are now set to study at Oxford or Cambridge University this year – which is more than leading independent schools.

At Eton, the 581-year-old boarding school where British premiers including Boris Johnson, David Cameron and Winston Churchill studied, 48 pupils secured Oxbridge offers – a fall from 69 last year.

In all, 350 students took their A levels at the school this year with 330 getting into Russell Group universities, including the 55 who got into Oxbridge. In 2014, just one Brampton student received an offer for Oxbridge, but by last year this had risen to 51.

Brampton Manor Academy tweeted praise for high-flying students Kenny and Iyanuoluwa, who will be flying off to Harvard and Stanford Universities in the United States respectively on full scholarships after scoring top A-level grades.  

Brampton Manor opened its sixth form in 2012 with the aim of transforming progression rates to Oxford, Cambridge and other elite Russell Group universities for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The oversubscribed selective sixth form accepts 300 to 400 students a year and some of them travel for as long as two hours each way to attend.

After a bout of excited screaming, hugs and hyperventilating, Nyat Aron-Yohannes said there was ‘black excellence in this building’ after hearing about how many of her classmates are now heading to Oxford or Cambridge.

The 18-year-old of Purfleet, Essex, who got three A*s and is going to Oxford to study philosophy, politics and economics, said ‘the struggle was real’.

She added: ‘We woke up early to come into school and sometimes it did not even seem like it was worth it at those times when the grades were not matching up to your work ethic.

‘Then lockdown happened and you had to persevere on your own because you did not have your classmates or teachers physically nearby to push you. You had to find strength somewhere else.

‘I am just grateful it paid off, we were walking in faith.’

She said she was happy for her relatives, particularly her father Abraham, adding: ‘I am the first in my family to go to Oxford.

‘My father told me this could be possible. His words were of motivation.’

Ade Olugboji, 18, of Purfleet, Essex, got four A*s and is going to study maths and philosophy at Oxford.

He said: ‘Brampton has a philosophy of hard work. I started at 6am and left at 6pm. I knew there was going to be work but I did not understand the level until I got here. The thing is once I saw everyone else working so hard and so well, it did not seem that it (success) was impossible.’

Kenny Ikeji, 18, of Dagenham, Essex, got the three A* grades he needed to study computer science at Harvard.

After picking up his grades, he said: ‘The feeling is good and seeing everyone happy as well is great because during the two years (of study) everyone was stressed out but on a day like this, it is as if all the hard work has paid off.

‘There are lots of people going to Oxford and Cambridge and I am not surprised because you would expect it when you see how hard everyone here works. Once they had their university offers, there was a new fire in them to study to make sure they got the grades to go.’

He described the school as a place where people do not let their inner city surroundings affect their hopes.

He said: ‘It is peer pressure because when everybody around you is studying, you see your friends getting better grades and then you want to get better grades. The teachers all push us and they make you want to do well so that you want to work. They do not force you to do it.’

Mr Dobin said the students had overcome a lot of disruption over the past two years but ‘they have kept incredibly determined, focused and motivated’.

He added: ‘The results today just demonstrate that they are being rewarded for the immense effort they have put in and the talent they have shown.’

Last summer, the fiasco around grading led to thousands of A-level students having their results downgraded from school estimates by a controversial algorithm, before Ofqual announced a U-turn. But this year, no algorithm will be used to moderate teachers’ grades. 

Gavin Williamson today defended this year’s record high A-level grades after it was revealed nearly half of this morning’s results were either A* or A – but the Education Secretary admitted there may still not be exams next year with teachers deciding the results again. 

In total, more than two in five, 44.8 per cent, of UK entries were awarded an A or A* grade this summer – up by 6.3 percentage points on last year when 38.5 per cent achieved the top grades, and one in five of all results was an A*, another record.

And according to an analysis by Ofqual, some 6.9 per cent of students in England were awarded three A*s this year – compared with 4.3 per cent in 2020 and 1.6 per cent in 2019, the last time they sat exams, as critics warned the education system had descended into the ‘wild west of grading’. 

It came as the total number of students accepted on to UK degree courses has risen five per cent on the same point last year, with 435,430 taking up places so far, initial Ucas figures show, but on the most popular courses up to a third of students may be rejected or have to go through clearing due to the number of people getting the required grades.  

Headteacher Nikki Clifton said of the three students on GB News: ‘They’re so brave, but they’re a credit to each and every youngster up and down, around the country and I couldn’t be happier for them.

‘Today’s a fabulous day, it’s one of my favourite days of the year and I think coming after the two years of disruption, I think I’m really looking forward to having a great day of fun and celebration with the students.’

Asked how she was feeling, Ms Clifton said: ‘I’m excited, a little bit nervous as I always am on these days because it is a nervous day and students are nervous. But I’m hopeful that our students will open a set of results that will give (sic) them where they want to go and I hope that is replicated up and down the country.’

She added: ‘It has been a very different and rigorous set of processes, and it’s very different to any other year. You can’t compare this set of year’s results with last year, we’ve got a completely different set of assessment parameters, a whole new policy, a whole different way of working for our students and our staff, and I couldn’t be prouder of them.’ 

Overall, the proportion of entries awarded the top A* grade this year has surged to 19.1 per cent – the highest proportion since the top grade was first introduced in 2010.

Girls performed better than boys at the top grades, and female maths students overtook boys for the first time in the number of A* grades achieved, figures for England, Wales and Northern Ireland show.

Luisa McMahon, 18, of Wollaton, Nottingham, achieved four A*’s in Maths, Further Maths, Geography and Psychology at Nottingham High School.

She said: ‘This year in particular has made me more anxious to get my results. We had loads of mini exams so as much as I worked for that, it’s still not the same as having one final end-of-year exam.

‘I am going to Loughborough University to do Maths and Sports Science. I am not sure what I want to do next, I am taking each step as it comes. I feel university will open more doors for me. My friends and family have congratulated me – everyone is really happy and relieved for me.

‘Nottingham High School always tends to do above average, around 45 per cent of my school got A*’s this year and 95 per cent got B’s and above.’

Razeen Surtee, 18, of West Bridgford, Nottingham, got four A*’s in Biology, Chemistry, Maths and Further Maths at Nottingham High School.

He said: ‘Now I have my results, I am going to the London School of Economics to study PPE – Philosophy, Politics and Economics. Perhaps I would like a career in politics but I am keeping it open. This year, with lockdowns, it has been very different with the lack of time to prepare and being unsure about what was going to happen with the exams.

‘But with the support of family and friends you get through it and it has turned out okay in the end. My parents are very happy and teary. It is nice to get the stress off my shoulders now. It feels like my school has done really well, everyone I have spoken to seems really happy – all my friends have got into their universities.’

Tom Bedforth, 18, of West Bridgford, Nottingham, achieved four A*’s in Religious Studies, Maths, Physics and Further Maths at Nottingham High School and will now go on to study at Oxford University.

He added: ‘I did very well, I’m really happy and pleased. My place is now confirmed to do Physics and Philosophy and Oxford University.

‘My friends and family knew how much these A-Levels meant to me, they are very pleased and relieved – mainly for my emotional state.

‘This year, for me, there has been an increase level of stress, just because normally I would have a set period of time to revise for a large final set of exams.

‘The uncertainty was stressful but it has all turned out well in the end. All any of us could do was just work as hard as we could. I feel very lucky. I am seeing a lot of happy people, my cohort seemed to be pleased with their results. I am now excited though for what is to come – if I do well in Physics, I’ll see if I can solve any big equations.’ 

One sixth former – David White, 18, from Romford, east London- has won a place at one of Britain’s top universities despite only attending school for 63 days in the academic year after catching Covid twice in just six months. 

It meant he could only attend for just over nine weeks in his final year of A-level studies with schools also shut during the second lockdown.

David also missed huge chunks in his first year during the initial lockdown and says he has hardly been at school in the last two years for his A Level course

Today, he discovered he scored the top marks in his A-levels to confirm his place to study physics at King’s College London in September.

David credits staff at Drapers Academy in Harold Hill, near Romford, with keeping him on track.

He said: ‘It has been totally crazy getting Covid twice in the space of six months. I was not really ill either time, but I lost my sense of taste and smell the second time.

‘It was more the isolation and the time I had to take off school on top of all the time I had missed because of the lockdown.

‘The school has been incredible though. They have made sure I keep up with my studies by getting all students tablets and helping us digitally. That has kept me on the right track.

‘It has been a really difficult couple of years for all of us and the young people at schools have had it really hard.

‘I am so pleased to get into my first-choice university. I had hardly been in school. I’m proud of what I achieved but think I could have been even better in a normal year.’ 

David wasn’t the only person at the school to contract the virus twice. Head of Sixth Form, Lee Bryant, is still suffering from fatigue some 10 months after a second bout of Covid.

He said: ‘I was off from October to December and still need to use the lift rather than the stairs. I can say in the 32 years I have been teaching that this has been the most difficult.

‘Our staff have been excellent and the students on returning to class have hit the ground running after overcoming many hurdles and getting used to Zoom, internet. They have adapted so well.’

Despite a challenging year 80 per cent of Drapers Academy A-level students achieved grades A*-C with several off to top London universities.

Other high achievers at the school include Jorja Korosec, 18, of Romford, who will study History at Queen’s College, Cambridge.

She said: ‘I have to thank the school for their amazing support during what has been a tough year. I am so excited to be going to Cambridge.’

Drapers Academy principal Darren Luckhurst said: ‘I have been totally amazed by our students who have shown such resilience. Their determination to succeed is shown through the fruits of their labour.

‘I have some excellent staff here who put their heart into teaching and have taken on extra work as well as continuing to teach other school years.’

‘Many of our students have parents who work in the care sector or the NHS so we often help homeschool other family members and hold down part time jobs. They worked so hard to achieve their results.’

Evie Smith, 18, gained her place at university after combining her studies with playing for Liverpool women’s under-21s.

The Archbishop Blanch School pupil will be able to study sports science at Liverpool John Moores University after achieving a distinction star and distinction BTECs and a B at A-level.

She said the decision on whether she takes up the place could depend on whether she is offered a professional football contract.

She said: ‘I’m really happy. I’ve been playing for the under-21s for the past two seasons while I’ve been in sixth form. It’s difficult trying to balance my time but the club are really supportive with that.’

Pupils at an inner city state school are celebrating after 55 teenagers got the A-level grades needed for them to study at Oxbridge, which is more than the offers made to Eton College students.

The majority of pupils at Brampton Manor Academy in Newham, east London, are from ethnic minority backgrounds, in receipt of free school meals (FSMs), or will be the first in their family to attend university.

Sam Dobin, Brampton’s sixth form director, said he is ‘delighted’ that 55 of its students are now set to study at Oxford or Cambridge University this year, which is more than leading independent schools.

At Eton, where Boris Johnson studied, 48 pupils secured Oxbridge offers, a fall from 69 last year.

After a bout of excited screaming, hugs and hyperventilating, Nyat Aron-Yohannes said there was ‘black excellence in this building’ after hearing about how many of her classmates are now heading to Oxford or Cambridge.

The 18-year-old of Purfleet, Essex, who got three A*s and is going to Oxford to study philosophy, politics and economics, said ‘the struggle was real’.

She added: ‘We woke up early to come into school and sometimes it did not even seem like it was worth it at those times when the grades were not matching up to your work ethic.

‘Then lockdown happened and you had to persevere on your own because you did not have your classmates or teachers physically nearby to push you. You had to find strength somewhere else. I am just grateful it paid off, we were walking in faith.’

She said she was happy for her relatives, particularly her father Abraham, adding: ‘I am the first in my family to go to Oxford. My father told me this could be possible. His words were of motivation.’

Ade Olugboji, 18, of Purfleet, Essex, got four A*s and is going to study maths and philosophy at Oxford.

He said: ‘Brampton has a philosophy of hard work. I started at 6am and left at 6pm. I knew there was going to be work but I did not understand the level until I got here.

‘The thing is once I saw everyone else working so hard and so well, it did not seem that it (success) was impossible.’

In all, 350 students took their A levels at the school this year with 330 getting into Russell Group universities, including the 55 who got into Oxbridge.

In 2014, just one Brampton student received an offer for Oxbridge, but by last year this had risen to 51.

Brampton Manor opened its sixth form in 2012 with the aim of transforming progression rates to Oxford, Cambridge and other elite Russell Group universities for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The oversubscribed selective sixth form accepts 300 to 400 students a year and some of them travel for as long as two hours each way to attend. Kenny Ikeji, 18, of Dagenham, east London, got the three A* grades he needed to study computer science at Harvard.

After picking up his grades, he said: ‘The feeling is good and seeing everyone happy as well is great because during the two years (of study) everyone was stressed out but on a day like this, it is as if all the hard work has paid off.

‘There are lots of people going to Oxford and Cambridge and I am not surprised because you would expect it when you see how hard everyone here works. Once they had their university offers, there was a new fire in them to study to make sure they got the grades to go.’

He described the school as a place where people do not let their inner city surroundings affect their hopes.

He said: ‘It is peer pressure because when everybody around you is studying, you see your friends getting better grades and then you want to get better grades. The teachers all push us and they make you want to do well so that you want to work. They do not force you to do it.’

Susan Hope, 18, also from Dagenham, is going to study education at Cambridge with the aim of a career in child psychology. She said: ‘I did not want to apply (to Cambridge) because of the fear of me getting rejected, but coming here made me think ‘If they can do it, then why can’t I?’

‘Coming from this area you do not see that many people going to university at all, but if you take that chance, work hard and you can achieve anything – that is what Brampton teaches us.

‘I came here expecting to have to work hard, and I think that is just the work ethic the school instils in us. We are all willing to work for it and we are in a support system that just nudges us a bit further to achieve those dreams that we are all pretty much capable of.’ 

Nana Arthur, 18, of Rainham, east London, who is heading to Cambridge University to study philosophy, said: ‘We are disadvantaged people and this school gave us a way to move up.

‘To be honest, as soon as you come into this school you can’t not succeed – it is quite infectious.’

Her friend, Kerena Arthur, of Dalston, east London, also 18, is going to Oxford to study politics, philosophy and economics after getting three A*s.

She said: ‘I am very, very pleased. I was not expecting it at all and struggled a lot but I worked hard. It is crazy.

‘If you are slacking, your friends will tell you. You were not on your own. It was very much like a family in terms of the way people pushed each other. I can’t lie, the teachers push you as well and, if you are slacking, you will know about it.’

Romero Featherstone, 18, of Plaistow, east London, said he was ‘a little’ surprised but pleased after he got the three A* grades which will take him to Cambridge to study chemical engineering.

He said: ‘The school prepares you well. The school regularly get people into Oxbridge, so going here meant that I thought I had a good chance.’ 

Mr Dobin said the students had overcome a lot of disruption over the past two years but ‘they have kept incredibly determined, focused and motivated’.

He added: ‘The results today just demonstrate that they are being rewarded for the immense effort they have put in and the talent they have shown.’

Paul Vicars, Headteacher of Birkenhead School said: ‘The results are great but students are far more than academic results on a piece of paper. 

‘I’m immensely proud of all the students and I think they’ve probably worked harder for these results than any other cohort before them because of the pandemic. 

‘It’s difficult not to get emotional seeing everyone coming to collect their results, knowing what they’ve achieved and the challenges they have overcome; these days are always impactful to watch as a teacher because you want the students to be rewarded for their efforts and they certainly have been.’ 

Chloe Byers, 18, got three A*s to study Biochemistry at University of Bath. She said: ‘I can’t believe it, I was not expecting those results, it’s an incredible surprise. 

‘It’s been hard because when you’re in school you’ll see your mates at break time or you can turn to someone next to you in class if you don’t understand something. 

‘The girls have been great at keeping in touch with each other though, we have set up group FaceTime sessions on the weekends and done quiz nights so we didn’t feel like we lost touch.

Her mother Ruth said: ‘We’ve both been in tears, I couldn’t be any more proud of Chloe because she has just taken everything in her stride. She was a new student at the sixth form and then went into lockdown so she’s really been up against it. 

‘I think she would have been happy with three As but she ended up with three A*s and you could see how delighted we were it was written all over our faces. I’m a single mum and Chloe and I are very close but the lockdown definitely brought us closer.   

‘We converted the spare room into her office so she had a space to work without it feeling like schoolwork had taken over her home. I’m just so overwhelmed to come here today and see that all her hard work has been worth it.’

Head girl, Lizzie Hyatt, 18, got three A*s and an A to study General Engineering at University of Durham. She said: ‘I think not seeing my friends and having that social interaction has been the hardest part. Coming into school and seeing my friends really helped to motivate me so within a month of sitting and doing online learning at home constantly my motivation just wasn’t there anymore. 

‘I still felt like the quality of learning that we were getting online was great from the school, we could still speak to teachers whenever we needed and they were in touch with us everyday but it was just hard not having the support network of friends around you. 

‘But to come and get these results today and see everybody without having to socially distance is so special. It feels amazing just to be able to hug my friends and celebrate with them finally.’ 

Head boy, Archie Parker-Goff, 18, got four A*s to study Economics at University of Bristol. He said: ‘It’s definitely been more intense doing A-levels through lockdown. 

‘The learning style was a lot more independent and there were definitely days when you would wake up and couldn’t be bothered and it was really hard to get motivated. 

‘But the teachers and the school have been amazing with their support and I was moving around different rooms in the house just to change the scene when I was studying. I spent a lot of time between home and visiting my grandma as well and it’s been lovely to come and collect my results with her because she’s so proud.’ 

His grandmother Sarah Parker said: ‘I’m very proud of him. We are quite an upbeat family and we laugh a lot but it has been worrying at times how the lockdown might affect them and you feel really sorry for them because they can’t go out and see their friends for a bit of light relief. But to come with him today and share this moment as he opened these results has been wonderful.’

But critics are concerned that middle class parents with ‘sharp elbows’ might have the upper hand when it comes for appeals, with the ‘have nots’ suffering disproportionately this year because they are more likely to be marked down and not appeal their results.

Robert Halfon, Tory chairman of the education select committee, said: ‘There’s likely to be grade inflation. The Government has got to make sure the appeals system is fair and easy to engage in and not just accessible to those with barristers for parents.’

Writing in the Telegraph, Mr Williamson said: ‘Because of the extraordinary conditions we have faced as a country, we announced in January that exams would not go ahead this year – it would have been unfair on students who had already given up so much in the battle against coronavirus. 

‘Their hard work, however, deserves to be rewarded with a qualification. We must support these students in looking to the future, because their whole lives are in front of them.’  

Asked on Sky News what the contingency plans are for next year’s exams, Mr Williamson said: ‘In the last academic year we have conducted an extensive consultation as we move back to examinations, and in a few weeks’ time as we go back into the winter period we will be doing another extensive consultation as to the contingency, which will be largely based around teacher-assessed grades, but we very much hope that we will be moving to a system of where we are able to move into the more normal pattern of examinations from next year, but always conscious that this pandemic, we have not always been able to predict the course of it, it has continuously changed, and it’s absolutely right that we have contingencies there, as we always do.’

Asked if he was ruling out teacher assessments for this time next year, he said: ‘What we are saying is you will probably have seen our consultation in the last academic year, we are very much planning to move back to examinations as a form of assessment, but we always have to have a contingency plan in place, and that’s why we will be consulting in the next academic year on those plans.’

Mr Williamson has said ’employers can have real confidence’ in the grades awarded to pupils.

Speaking to Sky News, he said: ‘This is a culmination of 13 years in education, I think we should be incredibly proud of their achievements, incredibly proud of the grades that they achieve.’

He said: ‘We do have a rigorous system of grading and awarding. People have been awarded this grade on the basis of evidence.

‘We took a difficult decision, and that decision was children were to be assessed on what they had been taught. We have seen various amounts of disruption around the country and children’s experiences have been different.

‘But still, you have a very clear grading system, you still see children who are achieving A*s, As, Bs, Cs, have really achieved so very, very much, and I think employers can have real confidence in the grades that they get. Let’s not forget this is an unprecedented year.’

This year, teachers in England submitted their decisions on pupils’ grades after drawing on a range of evidence, including mock exams, coursework, and in-class assessments using questions by exam boards.

Dr Mary Bousted, joint general secretary of the National Education Union, said: ‘Parents should be really warned not to hire lawyers to make the case for a different grade because it will impress no one, it won’t impress the exam boards.’  

She added: ‘Dressing up an appeal in legal language is not going to bolster that appeal, or make it more likely to succeed. So if you don’t want to waste your money, don’t do that.’

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said: ‘There is certainly a worry that we are going to face more appeals than normal, but we just don’t know yet. 

‘Although the appeal system is there to bring a further level of confidence, spurious appeals or hopeful appeals will probably be a waste of time because the system that’s been brought in is a robust system for this year.’

He added: ‘My only appeal to students and students’ parents is that a lot of work has gone into this assessment, you should be able to rely upon the assessment so simply putting an appeal in for the sake of appealing in the hope that your grade might move would be the wrong thing to do.’ 

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said ‘legal firms turning themselves into ambulance chasers and saying to parents for a certain fee they will run an appeal’ was unhelpful.

He said: ‘That seems to me incredibly misguided because appeals are there for anyone who wants to use them, but they’re based on two things: did the school follow due process, and was the grade awarded a fair grade. That will be down to the awarding organisation.

‘If you’ve got a concern then the process is there, but you really don’t need to be sending money to lawyers.’ 

The Department for Education has said all A-level grades have been checked by schools as part of a quality assurance (QA) process – and one in five schools had a sample of their grades checked by exam boards.

Last summer, the fiasco around grading led to thousands of A-level students having their results downgraded from school estimates by a controversial algorithm before Ofqual announced a U-turn.

This year there will not be an algorithm used to moderate grades. Nick Hillman, director of the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi), said it could be more difficult to get on to a top course this year if grades are missed. 

‘It could be harder to get in than usual if you fall a grade or two behind your offer and if it is a competitive course,’ he said. ‘My advice would be to act swiftly if you need to find a place somewhere else.’

An analysis conducted by PA Media suggests that the day before results were due to be released, for applicants living in England, there were more than 26,000 courses with availability.

It shows that, as of Monday afternoon, 14 of the 24 Russell Group universities had vacancies on courses for English residents – around 2,390 courses between them – on the Ucas clearing site. The numbers of courses listed change frequently as different courses are filled, or become available.

At the same point last year, the day before results day, 17 of the Russell Group institutions had around 4,485 undergraduate courses listed on clearing with potential availability for students in England.

Last week, the head of the admissions service warned that clearing is likely to be ‘more competitive’ for students seeking places at selective universities this year due to uncertainty on teacher-assessed grades. 

Clare Marchant, Ucas’s chief executive, urged students receiving their grades to make a decision ‘in a matter of days’ rather than waiting weeks.

But she added: ‘On Tuesday, I am expecting to wake up and have record numbers with their first choice.’ 

Last week, the Medical Schools Council, which represents 44 heads of medical schools across the UK, warned that some schools may still struggle to increase the number of students they admit despite the announcement that medicine and dentistry schools will receive funding to expand courses. 

Students who want to study medicine will have the option to defer their places until next year or choose to move to a different medical school amid capacity constraints, the MSC said.

Last night, Ofqual’s interim chief regulator Simon Lebus said that traditional tests only provided a ‘snapshot’ of a pupil’s ability and the new system allowed a fairer assessment gauged over a longer time period. 

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Lebus admitted that grades may be slightly higher this year, adding: ‘I think a good way to think of it is exams are a bit like a snapshot, a photograph – you capture an instant, it’s a form of sampling.

‘Whereas teacher assessment, it allows teachers to observe student performance over a much longer period, in a rather more complex way, taking into account lots of different pieces of work and arriving at a holistic judgment. 

‘I think, from that point of view, we can feel satisfied that it’s likely to give a much more accurate and substantial reflection of what their students are capable of achieving.’  

Ms Bousted told the Times: ‘I think there was a political decision to put teachers in the firing line. We think there will be a rise in the top grades but I’ve been assured by government that they won’t say teachers have been too generous.’ 

Mr Lebus said that the watchdog wanted to create a system where every student was given a fair chance to show what they can do. 

‘I’m very confident that, when they get their grades on Tuesday and Thursday this week, they’ll be able to feel satisfied that that’s happened,’ he told the broadcaster. 

Mr Lebus said there have been three stages of checks to ensure students can feel they have been ‘fairly treated’, including Ofqual checking the policies that schools have for awarding grades and exam boards looking over them.

Headteachers had to submit a personal declaration that they believed grades to be accurate. Schools and colleges were asked to provide samples of student work to exam boards, as well as evidence used to determine the grades for the students selected, as part of quality assurance (QA) checks. 

It comes as Tory peer Lord Lucas predicted that private school pupils will get short shrift in admissions because universities are prioritising the disadvantaged.  

The editor of the Good Schools Guide said yesterday that institutes will be ‘pretty cautious’ about giving places to fee-paying youngsters who missed their grades as they had ‘all the chances’ to succeed. 

Instead, they will give leg-ups to pupils who experienced ‘challenges’ such as having ‘nowhere to work’ during lockdown. 

But despite alleged grade inflation, individual pupils could lose out and there is likely to be variability between schools.  

Last night, Ofqual defended the system, claiming the results are ‘more accurate’ than if exams had been held mid-pandemic.

The Prime Minister’s spokesman said: ‘Students have worked incredibly hard during an extremely challenging time. We know exams are the fairest form of assessment but in their absence this year there is no one better placed to judge their abilities than their teachers.’

Suggestions that almost half of today’s grades will be an A or A* were reported in the Times. 

Mr Williamson wrote to all teachers, thanking them for their ‘hard work’ on grading. The Association of School and College Leaders stressed that qualifications had not been ‘devalued’.

Lord Lucas said anyone not getting the grades they need for university should call the admissions tutor. But he said that ‘tutors will say the hardest time has been had by state schools but by and large, independent schools have got through Covid pretty well’. 

He added that institutes will be ‘pretty cautious about giving extra space to someone from an independent school’ as ‘they’ve had all the chances’ to succeed.

‘I think admissions tutors will say the hardest time has been had by state schools but by and large, independent schools have got through Covid pretty well,’ he said. ‘They haven’t had half the challenges of someone else who has nowhere to work, or doesn’t have an online connection.’

Kate Green, Labour’s shadow education secretary, said: ‘Students have worked incredibly hard in extraordinary circumstances and should be proud of the results they are receiving today. They have done this in spite of a Conservative government which has let them down at every turn and shown no ambition for their futures.’

It came after Sir Keir Starmer warned that ‘chaos and incompetence’ in Government had created extra stress for those awaiting their results.

The Labour leader said Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Mr Williamson had failed to act early enough to ensure this summer’s results operations run smoothly.

‘It frustrates me immensely that this week’s big moment in so many young people’s lives is being risked by the chaos and incompetence at the top of this Government,’ he said. 

The Department for Education said it recognises the ‘unprecedented challenges pupils and students have faced’ during the pandemic and that a ‘rigorous system to ensure grades are fair’ has been put in place.