GCSE results: Hathershaw students enjoy their moment in the limelight

The Hathershaw College is celebrating this year’s GCSE results with some tremendous individual success stories and with the majority of our cohort progressing to trust partner Oldham Sixth Form College. 

The class of 2024 started their secondary school lives in September 2019, a few months before their education was disrupted by Covid in March 2020, which meant that they didn’t return to the classroom until September of that year, only to be met with another enforced closure of schools in January 2021 which kept them out of school until March.

As well as the enforced closures, there were of course periods of self-isolation as a result of contact tracing.

It is fair to say that through no fault of their own, this cohort of students didn’t have the best start to secondary school life, leaving them with lots of gaps in their subject knowledge as well as having been isolated from their friends and unable to experience everything that school has to offer in terms of educational visits and extra-curricular activities.

The resilience they have shown through all of this is impressive. 

Mark Giles, Hathershaw’s Principal, said: “The most important part of our exam results day is an opportunity to celebrate the success of the students.

"This is their moment in the limelight, their opportunity to celebrate and show what they have achieved in the most difficult of circumstances as a result of unprecedented disruption to their early years at secondary school as a result of Covid.

"I also want to recognise the work of our staff who teach them well on a day-to-day basis but also continue to go the extra mile, providing revision classes after school, at the weekend and during the holidays, which they do to make a difference to the life chances of our students.” 

All of Hathershaw's students deserve their results, but some notable achievements are: 

• Munal Ovais who achieved eight grade 9s 

• Sharmili Fatema who achieved five grade 9s, three grade 8s and one grade 7 

• Hope Adjei who achieved a level 2 distinction (star), three grade 9s, three grade 8s and two grade 7s 

• Hafsah Ahmed who achieved two grade 9s, five grade 8s and two grade 7s 

• Aleeza Ali who achieved one grade 9, seven grade 8s and one grade 7 

Staff also want to recognise the achievements of Neha Bhudia who achieved impressive examination results despite having been involved in a serious road traffic accident shortly before her exams, and Umme Kalsum Tanvir who impressed despite long periods of hospitalisation. 

Emma Whitehouse achieved an excellent set of results and is taking up post with our trust partner, Broadfield Primary School, as an apprentice teaching assistant, with a long-term goal of becoming a teacher. 

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