Oldham students are pass masters

Oldham’s A-level students have bucked the national trend.

Oldham Council says while the overall pass rate is slightly down on last year, it is 0.4 per cent higher than the national average. The provisional overall pass rate from A-E in Oldham is 98.4 per cent.

There has also been a bigger increase in the number of Oldham students achieving A* grades.

Council chiefs say they will help school and college leavers into employment through the Get Oldham Working campaign, which aims to create 2,015 new jobs in the borough by 2015 and stimulate the local economy.

Councillor Amanda Chadderton, Cabinet Member for Education, Employment and Skills, said: “A-Level results have edged down nationally due to tougher exams, and Oldham’s overall pass rate for A-E has slightly dropped by 0.2 per cent – but this was a much lower reduction than the national trend, which showed a one per cent fall.

“These excellent results are testament to the hard work from students and staff, and I would like to congratulate everyone on their dedication.

“Oldham Council and colleges have invested millions into the borough to give local students access to state-of-the-art learning facilities. Though progress has been made in recent years – and these results are positive – we are not going to be complacent.”