Academic Results

GCSE Results 2020
93% A*- B grades
99.5% A*- C grades
64% of all grades at A* and A
100% A* grades in Classics
90% grade 5 and above in Maths
84% A*- A grades in Fine Art
100% grade 5 and above in Chemistry, Biology and Physics

A Level Results 2020
87% of all grades at A* – C
76% of all grades at A*- B
57% of all grades at A* and A
76% A*- A grades Art and Music
85% A* – B in Maths
100% A* – B in History
100% A* – B in Further Maths

Highest Oxbridge applicant success rate since 2013
Highest Medical School application success rate on record

Press Release

After a turbulent few weeks for both teachers and students, we are delighted to report that Battle Abbey School are celebrating their best ever set of GCSE results. The Year 11 cohort of 2020 is truly exceptional and these record-breaking results therefore come as no surprise. Overall an amazing 64% of grades were A*- A grade equivalent with a staggering A*- B pass rate of 92%.

Headmaster David Clark said; ‘We genuinely couldn’t be happier with the results and this hugely talented group of students has been rewarded with the results that they deserve.

There were so many personal bests secured by students of all abilities and strong results were in evidence across all subjects and the impressive statistics reflect the wide-ranging academic strengths of the school.

Particular mention should go to Ruby Chisholm Beyer (10 A and A* grades) George Jempson (10 A and A* grades) Maisie Kirby (11 A* grades), Joshua Bostock (9 A*), Noah Kirby (10 A and A* grades), Felix Rodgers (10 A and A* grades) Ameya Sangle (10 A and A* grades) Harrison Todd (10 A*s) Phoebe Upton (10 A and A* grades), Kyle Willis (10 A and A* grades) and Ru Handyside (9 A and A*s).

We are suitably excited about what this exceptional cohort will go on to achieve with us at A Level but below the A and A*s, it’s the children who won’t make the headlines that constitute some of the most pleasing results for us. The pupils who we managed to assist in getting Bs and Cs when they sometimes lacked self-belief were particularly memorable as was the fact that a large number of boys performed at the very top level – which goes against the national picture.

Our highly committed teachers were given a real boost too as they were able to celebrate these great results alongside their students. Certain subjects performed particularly well including our Classics department where, astonishingly, all candidates achieved A* grades.  The Maths Department at Battle Abbey continues to set the highest standards and has, once again, secured probably the best results of any non-selective school in the country. Our superb reputation in the creative arts endures with 100% of our Textiles cohort receiving A*-A grades and 84% of the fine artists getting an A* or A. Also notable were the Chemistry, Physics and Biology grades which were mainly graded at the top level and the Humanities and Computer Science results were equally impressive.

Although this year’s results are based on teacher predictions, we have an enviable track record of accurate predictions so we are thoroughly confident that these superb results properly reflect the cohort’s true academic ability’.

Despite the national uncertainty over grading Battle Abbey School is celebrating another very strong year for A Level results with three quarters of all grades at A* – B.

Headmaster David Clark said ‘We couldn’t be more delighted with the cohort’s attitude and resilience in what amounts to a very different final year with us. We were expecting great things from this academically strong group and they have not disappointed. Even with the controversy over the marking system the results reflect the hard work and positive attitude of our current Year 13s. With the numerous changes and confusion surrounding the grades issued by exam boards it is clear that we will be asking for particular marks to be looked at so we are expecting grades to go up, fairly dramatically in some cases. In the meantime, we will focus on and celebrate the wonderful outcomes our pupils have achieved from their time at the Abbey and congratulate both the students and teachers for their amazing efforts’.

The vast majority of our pupils have come through the system here at Battle Abbey but every year a good percentage of our Sixth Form join us in Year 12 from a variety of local secondary schools and this year in particular our contingents from Bexhill Academy and Robertsbridge have done us, and themselves, proud.

Molly Jeffery, Luke Brundle and Luke Remon all joined us from Bexhill Academy for Sixth Form and did exceptionally with Molly achieving (A* A* and A*), Luke Remon (A* A B) and Luke Brundle an outstanding (A* A* A*). They will now go on to study Psychology at UCL, Mechanical Engineering at Warwick and Maths at UCL respectively.

Our former Robertsbridge pupils also deserve special mention with no less than three now set to take up places at Oxford and Cambridge. Ella Lowden Hampshire’s A* A* A* secures her place to study Human, Social and Political Sciences at Cambridge, while Lois Gardner (A* A* A*) will go on to study Art History at Oxford. Similarly, Kitty Atherton (A* A* A*) now looks set to take up a place at either Oxford or Cambridge or she may opt to study at the highly prestigious Courtauld Institute instead.

So many other students have excelled too, including Louis Choron (A* A* A) Thea Thompson (A* A* A*) Alysia Dunton (A* A* A*) Jonjo Murphy (A* A* A) and Rhian Perry (A* A A).  Other than the amazing Oxbridge success, a significant number have been accepted to Russell Group universities with students accepted to study a wonderful array of courses including Criminology, Physics and Philosophy, Liberal Arts, Material Sciences and Law among others.

As usual our nationally recognized Art departments achieved the very highest standards with our Art, Textiles, Photography and Music cohorts seeing 76% of pupils securing A*-A grades – a stunning achievement. Other subjects fared equally well with both History and Further Maths seeing 100% of their pupils achieve A* – B.

Craig Austen White, Director of Studies, said; ‘We should rightly applaud our currents Year 13 leavers’ achievements but a big part of my role here is looking ahead and I’m particularly excited for next year already. Our Virtual online learning scheme over the Spring and Summer terms has been nothing short of a triumph. We are exceedingly confident that going forward our pupils are excellently placed to push on for next year at a time when the impact of this year’s Covid-19 will be felt keenly across education and academia. Forecasting suggests that we may even see record results next year. In terms of pupil outcomes this would amount to a quite staggering achievement when you consider the huge upheaval associated with moving our school entirely online on what amounted to a very short lead time. Kudos here should go to both pupils and teachers for adapting so successfully.’

This year we have had a record three pupils accepted for Medical School. Hugely competitive and oversubscribed courses. We are delighted to announce that now, based on their excellent results, Harvey Steed will be going to Kent and Medway University in September to study Medicine with the eventual hope of becoming a Trauma Surgeon. Thea Thompson will be heading to University of Bristol to study Medicine with a view to eventually working as a Brain Surgeon. Current School Guardian William Ashenden will be heading (after a year out) to Hull York Medical School, with the hope of eventually getting into Pediatrics.