Results and Destinations

Key Stage 5 Results 2023

Congratulations to all our students on achieving outstanding A level results again this year.

As always the profile of our grades shows a very strong bias towards the upper range of grades. 79% of the A Level results were at grade C or better and 71% of these grades were either A*, A or B.

There were 220 A* and A grades altogether, including 40 students that achieved 3 or more grade A* or A passes.

These superb results reflect the hard work and dedication of our students and staff, and will enable the students to take their next steps with confidence. The outcomes in terms of students being placed at universities and high calibre apprenticeships of their choice are exceptionally good this year.

Headline HGS 2023 HGS 2022 HGS 2021† HGS 2020^ HGS 2019
A*-B 55.9% 65.9% 68.3% 56.2% 55.1%
A*-C 79.2% 83.0% 83.9% 77.9% 78.3%
A*-E 97.1% 98.4% 99.2% 99.5% 96.2%
Average Grade (A-Level) B B B B B
Attainment 35.9 39.6 40.3 37.1 35
English and Maths Progress N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Retention TBC* 97.6% 94.9% 92.4% 95.3%

* The retention measures for state-funded schools and FE sector college will be provided in March 2024. † Teacher Assessed Grades. ^ Centre Assessed Grades

Further information can be found on the Department for Education’s ‘Compare School Performance’ website.

Destinations 2023

To be updated Autumn Term 2023.

Destinations 2022

One of the marks of the success of any year group, and of a school more generally, is what its students go on to enjoy and achieve after graduation. As the lists of university destinations, courses and higher-level apprenticeships that follow show, the class of 2022 should take enormous pride in their achievements, both individually and collectively. The fact that their progress and achievements are so impressive, in spite of the continued disruption caused to their studies by Covid-19, is all the more remarkable. For this cohort of individuals their A levels were the first formal exams they sat as they missed the opportunity to undertake their GCSE exams. Therefore, it cannot be underestimated what an achievement this is. They will be remembered as another outstanding cohort in the long and proud history of Heckmondwike Grammar School.

Our students went on to study over 85 different degree courses this autumn – ranging from accounting to veterinary medicine, with courses in between made up of the familiar (history, chemistry, geography) and the new (speech and language therapy, architecture, law ). Clearly, the class of 2022 are destined to go on and do amazing things.

Perhaps most remarkably, 75% of university applicants progressed to their first-choice university. Given the ambitions and talents of our students, this means that the Heckmondwike Grammar School class of 2022 are overrepresented compared with their peers nationally at the most prestigious universities. Five students have joined a host of past alumni and are now studying at Oxford or Cambridge universities, and a staggering 75 (over 42% of university destinations) are now at research-led Russell Group universities. In addition, 12 students progressed to highly competitive degrees in medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine.

Many of the class of 2022 also continued a long-term trend of students looking for alternatives to university. Although over 76% of the year group did start university in September 2022, or have secured deferred places for 2023 entry, others were successful in securing highly selective apprenticeship placements at some of the most prestigious employers in the UK and on a global scale. Some of our students are now embarking on professional training with employers ranging including PWC, KPMG, Ernst and Young, and West Yorkshire police. A number also selected to take a gap year due to the pressures that Covid has brought.

We are proud of all of our students, both of their contributions and achievements while part of our community, and what they will contribute and achieve in the wider world beyond Heckmondwike.

Click this link to view a full list of Destinations for our Class of 22