THERE will be celebrations today as GCSE students collect their results with the percentage of those achieving A* or A up to 18.3 per cent, a slight rise on last year.

The percentage of pupils in Pembrokeshire achieving A* – C grades is 66 per cent not far behind the Wales figure of 66.6 per cent.

The A* - G percentage pass rate in Pembrokeshire is 99.1 per cent.

Pembrokeshire County Council’s Head of Education, Kate Evan-Hughes, said: “Overall provisional results in Pembrokeshire show some areas of improvement, however we are aware that there is more work to be done.

“We will continue to work with all schools to ensure that Pembrokeshire’s pupils achieve the best possible outcomes.

“We congratulate all of the students on their achievements. Their results are down to the commitment and hard work of the pupils, the dedication of teaching staff and the support of their families. We wish them every success in their future.”

At Pembroke School the results were very encouraging overall. Headteacher Frank Ciccotti commented that although there had been a small drop in Maths results, this was overshadowed by a significant rise in English, so that the key performance indicator -the Level 2 including English and Maths – had reached a record level for the school. The work introducing the Welsh Baccalaureate had led last year to a dramatic rise in the proportion of pupils attaining five or more high grades, and this was sustained in 2014, with 88% of students attaining this standard.

The school had exceeded its targets in most of the key performance indicators. Mr Ciccotti thanked all pupils and staff for their hard work in maintaining the pace of improvement.

Ysgol Dewi Sant headteacher David Haynes was happy after a marked improvement in the school’s GCSE results.

“There has been a significant increase in student performance, with a 13% rise in the number achieving five GCSE’S including English and Maths.

“That figure now stands at 64.4%, while 87.4% have achieved five A*-C grades, and 99% achieved five GCSE’S A*-G.

“I would like to congratulate all students and staff on their outstanding work this year.”

Among those to excel were twins Kitty and Ellie Bennett, with Kitty achieving 11 A*’s and an A, and Ellie seven A*’s, three A’s, and a B.

Also, Ceridwen Price, who got eight A*’s and two A’s, and Amy Barwick seven A*’s, two A’s and a B.

Pembrokeshire County Council Leader, Councillor Jamie Adams, said: “While overall there is evidence of a sustained improvement, there are still some schools with a number of challenges.

“Pembrokeshire, as part of the Education through Regional Working team, will work closely to ensure that best practice is shared among all schools within the region. This will help in continuing to drive educational standards upwards.”

*For more GCSE results and pictures see next week's Western Telegraph