Cherry blossom tree marks start of ‘Rooted in Reading’ campaign
Brighter Futures for Children and Ethical Reading joint press release, February 18 2020
When a 14-year-old boy moved to his permanent foster home last year, he came up with an idea to help himself – and others like him – keep their roots in Reading.
As an active member of Brighter Futures for Children’s Children in Care Council, he suggested a tree would help him, and others just like him, feel ‘rooted’ in the town.
He wanted a tree that would ‘grow fast and tall, live a long time and have pinky white blossom that would flutter down in the wind.’
Catie Blundell, Brighter Futures for Children’s participation officer, wanted to make this happen for him and others like him, so she worked in partnership with Ethical Reading and its innovative Trees for Reading initiative.
In association with Reading Borough Council (RBC) and Reading Tree Wardens, the initiative offers local organisations and individuals the opportunity to make a positive difference by sponsoring the planting and care of trees within the town.
Lead Councillor for Culture, Heritage and Recreation, Cllr Karen Rowland, passionately supported the project.
The people of Reading have paid for the tree through crowdfunding on Ethical Reading’s JustGiving page.
The double-bloom ornamental cherry tree – a Prunus avium ‘Plena’ – was planted outside the town hall in a special ceremony on Monday 17 February.
The private event was attended by members of the various organisations involved and, most importantly, by children and young people in care.
‘His idea was brilliant and it will help him, and many others like him, feel they truly belong. We have a lot of children and young people who either can’t live in Reading anymore because it isn’t safe for them to do so, or who have to live outside Reading because we don’t have enough local foster carers,’ said Brighter Futures for Children’s managing director Tony Kildare. ‘We can’t thank Ethical Reading and Reading Borough Council enough for working with us to make it happen.’
Brighter Futures for Children will shortly be launching a campaign, based on the tree and what it symbolises, called ‘Rooted in Reading’, to find more local foster carers.
Kathryn McCann, from Ethical Reading’s Sustainability team, commented: ‘It has been such a pleasure to work with him, Catie and the team at Brighter Futures for Children to make this happen. We look forward to seeing the tree in bloom, and hope that it will be a potent symbol of hope and belonging for Reading children in care for many years to come.’
Liz Terry, Reading Borough Council’s Lead Councillor for Children, said: ‘Our focus as a council is to achieve the best possible outcomes for children and young people in Reading. While it is not always possible due to individual circumstances, where we can we want children to be fostered in their home town, where they already have put down roots and where they feel secure and settled. The new tree in Town Hall Square is a symbol of that ambition and the council is pleased to have worked with partners to have made it a reality.’
Karen Rowland, Lead Councillor for Culture, Heritage and Recreation, said: ‘The planting of this tree is particularly meaningful to me, as an adopted child who experienced first-hand a personal sense of loss from being separated from the place where I was born. I’m thrilled to be able to play a role in helping this young person’s vision become a reality here in Reading.’
Notes to Editors
To find out more about becoming a foster carer with Brighter Futures for Children, visit the website: https://brighterfuturesforchildren.org/services/fostering/
Find out more about Ethical Reading’s Trees for Reading project here:
https://ethicalreading.org.uk/trees-for-reading/
‘Outstanding’ rating for our short breaks children’s home
Cressingham, one of two children’s homes run in Reading by Brighter Futures for Children, has been rated as ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted after a recent unannounced inspection visit.
The inspector awarded ‘Outstanding’ ratings to all three key areas – the overall experiences and progress of children, how well children and young people were helped and protected and the effectiveness of leaders and managers.
This was Cressingham’s first Ofsted inspection since Brighter Futures for Children took over children’s services from Reading Borough Council in December 2018. The inspector visited the home on 3-4 December 2019.
Cressingham provides short breaks (respite) care to families of children/young people who have complex health needs, learning and associated physical and/or sensory disabilities, complex communication disabilities (Autism) and/or challenging behaviour associated with a disability.
It offers overnight accommodation for six children (male and female) between the ages of 8 to 18 who primarily live in the Reading area but also accepts applications from neighbouring local authorities.
The inspection report said that ‘children benefit immensely from their short breaks and look forward to them’.
The inspector found that ‘staff focus on the children doing their best, seeing beyond their disability’ and that children enjoyed excellent relationships with staff, which was evident through the children’s ‘laughter and broad smiles’.
He said staff ‘care for the children with tenderness, warmth and love. This creates an atmosphere which is nurturing and supporting, in which children thrive.’
Staff were praised for threading the children’s identity and cultural needs through all aspects of their care and for providing a range of stimulating activities and encouraging play.
In addition, they were praised for demonstrating an excellent knowledge in how to protect and safeguard the children and for recognising the children’s vulnerability and for not being complacent.
The inspector noted that the registered manager, Helena Baptista, had developed an ‘effective impact assessment to consider the suitability of children being referred to the home’ and that children were well matched, with opportunities to socialise and have fun with other children to support their personal development.
Praise was given for up-to-date support plans, healthcare plans and safer recruitment practice.
The inspector had particular praise for Helena’s forward thinking, innovative ideas and leadership skills, with weekly team meetings and training needs fully met.
Tony Kildare, Managing Director of Brighter Futures for Children, said he was delighted with the rating, which was testament to Helena’s leadership and the whole team’s dedication to improving the lives of the children and young people they cared for.
‘This is a double success for Helena and her team, as Pinecroft, the other children’s home she manages, was rated outstanding last year too.
‘We are all extremely proud of everyone involved in the delivery of an outstanding and vital service to children, young people and their families.’
Cllr Liz Terry, Reading’s Lead Councillor for Children’s Services, said: ‘I would like to congratulate the team at Cressingham Children’s Home for consistently providing high-quality caring services for the children and young people who visit.
‘Children benefit enormously from their short breaks at Cressingham and their parents and carers know they are being looked after by a wonderfully caring and thoughtful staff team.
‘Everyone associated with the home should be very proud of such an exceptional Ofsted report.’
The full report can be found on Ofsted’s website:
https://files.ofsted.gov.uk/v1/file/50142792
Reading’s Improving Children’s Services Out of Intervention
In a letter to Reading Borough Council Leader Jason Brock today (Feb 8), Vicky Ford, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Children and Families, confirmed she was lifting the Government direction with immediate effect, as a result of the continuing improvement of children’s services in Reading by the Council and Brighter Futures for Children (BFfC).
Today’s letter acknowledges ‘significant improvement’ since Ofsted’s inspection 5 years ago and the ‘hard work and commitment of all involved at the Council.’ It goes on to say: “Elected members, senior leaders, partners and staff at all levels in Reading have demonstrated a commitment to achieving this. In doing so, Reading has ensured that vulnerable children and families now have access to an improved quality of service.”
Reading’s Children’s Services were first placed in intervention in 2016 following an Ofsted inspection, with a revised Direction issued in December 2018. A 2019 Ofsted report highlighted examples of strong practice across the service, including in early help services. It also showed there were areas where improvement was still required.
A recent subsequent report by children’s services commissioner Nick Whitfield acknowledged the pace of improvements have continued post inspection, alongside an ongoing commitment from both Reading Borough Council and Brighter Futures for Children for this to continue. He recommended removal of Government intervention, which was confirmed in today’s letter to the Council Leader.
The letter adds: “This is an important and well-deserved step but there is still more work to do. I will be asking my officials to stay close to your continuing improvement journey, and, to that end, Reading will now enter a period of ‘support and supervision’, in line with all authorities who exit formal intervention.”
Today’s removal of the Statutory Direction is the culmination of five years of hard work. The decision has been welcomed by the Council and Brighter Futures for Children, who manage children’s services on behalf of the Council.
Liz Terry, Reading Borough Council’s Lead Councillor for Children’s Services, said:
“This is hugely welcome news for all staff working with children and families, whether at the Council or Brighter Futures for Children, who have worked so tirelessly over the last five years to drive forward improvements to children’s services in Reading. What is even more impressive is that improvements have continued during the pandemic, which continues to throw up huge challenges for children’s services and local government, which are likely to continue for some years’ to come.
“Children’s social care teams everywhere have a huge responsibility in minimising the impact of the pandemic on vulnerable children and young people. I am delighted that their hard work in Reading has been acknowledged in this way.
“Along with our colleagues at Brighter Futures for Children, our statutory partners in health, police and in our schools, and the voluntary/community sector, we all have a responsibility to help every single child in Reading achieve their full potential, no matter how challenging their personal circumstances may be. We know there is a long way to go and much more work to do, but the lifting of this notice is a major milestone in a continuing improvement journey.”
Ashley Pearce, Lead Councillor for Education at the Council, said:
“While it has been uniquely challenging year for everyone involved in delivering education to the children and young people of Reading, the removal of intervention is the culmination of five years of tremendous efforts to turn the service around.
“Teachers and teaching staff continue to work hard to give every child and young person in Reading the very best possible start in life, at times under very trying circumstances. I’d like to thank them for their hugely valuable contribution.
“We all now need to redouble our efforts in developing vital care, education and support services for children and young people across the town.”
Di Smith, Chair of the Brighter Futures for Children Board, said:
“I am delighted with this news which is a positive endorsement of the progress Brighter Futures for Children has made. I would like to pay tribute to our amazing staff who are firmly committed to building on these gains and to securing further improvement for the benefit of children, young people and families in Reading.”
Reading Youth Council 2020 Conference
by Kalvin Gavrilov
Reading Youth Council press officer
When and where: Friday, 31 January, 9am-3pm at Meadow Suite, Reading University
The time has come to announce the 2020 Reading Youth Council Conference, entirely planned and delivered by the young people on the Council for their peers.
The conference this year is entitled Inform, Impact and Imagine. Our special guests are MP Matt Rodda, Brighter Futures for Children’s Managing Director Tony Kildare, Richard Usher from the Schools Climate conferences, and Jason Brock, Leader of Reading Borough Council.
Established in 2005, the Reading Youth Council has provided generation upon generation of ambitious, hardworking young people, fueled by the needs of the people and driven to succeed in providing them with inventive and shrewd solutions. Examples of completed projects include keeping bus fares for 16-year-olds, a mental health treaty and producing a magazine on equality.
Concentrating on the Youth Council’s research findings, the aim of the conference is to showcase their work. Our aim is to help fellow young people become informed and impacted by our work and we hope to inspire new imagination to aid us in making Reading greater.
Reading schools will be attending the event as we strive to gather potential new members. We know that Reading offers a variety of people with versatile skills and ambitions to meet the demands of the community and we need to recruit more and more members as we expand our network.
The conference will feature a series of unique workshops and activities centered around exploring climate change anxiety, confidentiality in schools, the use of knives for protection and self-defense, money management, life skills and our three campaigns: Mental Health, Putting an End to Knife Crime and Tackling Homelessness.
Mental Health is, unfortunately, still considered a taboo subject by many, yet nothing silences our 18 members, who work on behalf of the several thousands who attend schools and live in Reading.
Their work includes carrying out surveys on mental health awareness - helping to further our understanding of necessary methods of educating others and to help grow a chain of support. This was then put into action with PSHE workshops for a mental health programme. While we acknowledge that we may not ever experience the pain and suffering from intense mental health struggles, our representatives have remained unconditionally empathetic as we aim to continue to provide more and more to tackle this topic.
Recognising the outstanding efforts made by local police and helping to further their work, led to many of us choosing to work on our Putting an end to Knife Crime Campaign. Police deal with an estimated 130 acts of violence every single day. This unimaginable figure is only expected to increase as more and more families grieve and ache as yet another one of their loved ones is found to have been stabbed.
As giving our community a voice is one of our core ideals, we will hold various workshops during the conference. We will mark a new era of action as we inspire change and lead the young people of Reading towards a better tomorrow. And what does this entail? A promise towards making our streets safer while teaching people on self-defense. With the help of all of you, knife crime will be no more. It is no wonder it was voted among the top problems to tackle in 2019 ballots across the UK.
It would have been beneficial to begin with an exact national figure regarding homelessness, but it remains near incalculable. What is more shocking is how under the Vagrancy Act, it remains illegal to sleep rough and beg. For people who seem to have lived through Hell, they still sit with gentle smiles, each with their own stories ranging from family fallouts to school dropouts.
The next best step in our Tackling Homeless Campaign. Let’s take the next step in helping those without a home in Reading and attending the conference, which provides the chance to vote on this issue among many others.
Students will be given the opportunity to actively take part in debates themed around the environment and knife crime. Conference delegates will also be entitled to vote for the third campaign, which will be selected from the choice of topics voted in 2019 Make Your Mark Ballot.
Your voice makes a difference! My fellow members at the Reading Youth Council and I would like to welcome you to the conference – we hope to see you all there!
Launch of new mental health service for Reading’s young people
Brighter Futures for Children is delighted to be part of an innovative trailblazer project in Reading offering additional mental health services to children and young people.
The official launch of the Mental Health Support Team (MHST) takes place on Thursday, 30 January, 1.30-3pm at Blessed Hugh Faringdon School, Fawley Road, Reading RG30 3EP.
The aim is to support children and young with mental health and wellbeing needs who may not reach the threshold to be a diagnosable mental health disorder.
The MHST is part of a Reading-wide systemic approach to improving mental health for children and young people. Brighter Futures for Children is working in partnership with the NHS Berkshire West Clinical Commissioning Group, which is funding the project, to form the MHST.
The MHST will offer low intensity interventions to support children and young people (and their families) who are experiencing mild to moderate mental health problems, focusing particularly on low mood, anxiety and behavioural difficulties. The aim is to help prevent more serious problems developing.
‘This is a great initiative and one we wouldn’t have been able to do without the full support of the CCG,’ said Brighter Futures for Children’s managing director Tony Kildare. ‘The mental wellbeing of all children and young people is very important to us and we hope others in the ONE Reading Partnership will also support us with the delivery of this important area of work.’
Cathy Winfield, Chief Officer for Berkshire West Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) said: “We’re delighted to be part of this project and to be working with partners to help improve the mental wellbeing of children and young people.”
The MHST, which is initially being launched across schools in West Reading, complements existing mental health support already provided in schools and by existing professionals and services, such as school-based counsellors, educational psychologists, school nurses, school pastoral care teams, educational welfare officers, voluntary sector organisations and CAMH services.
Leaflets and posters will be distributed across schools included in the pilot project, which will tell pupils and staff how to access the service. An additional offer is an online form which children and young people can fill in and send in themselves. This will be placed on Brighter Futures for Children’s website (www.brighterfuturesforchildren.org/MHST-referral-form) and on the Local Offer on the Reading Services Guide.
At the launch on 30 January, a group of students from Blessed Hugh Faringdon will perform their own drama production to highlight the issues around mental health as they perceive them.
They will then lead a Q & A session after this to share their experiences and thoughts around mental health and invite questions.
Senior leaders from Brighter Futures for Children, Reading Borough Council and the NHS Berkshire West Clinical Commissioning Group will be at the event to introduce the initiative and join in the Q&A session.
Children’s services host first Reading-wide climate change conference for headteachers
Brighter Futures for Children is paving the way for every school in Reading to have UN-accredited climate change teacher.
On 4 November, the education arm of the Reading-based children’s services is hosting a climate change conference for headteachers and their nominated individual teacher from each school, to learn more about becoming UN-accredited in teaching and contributing to national climate change learning strategies.
‘We are keen to put Reading schools at the forefront of a growing initiative to improve the quality and relevance of climate change learning,’ said Prof Dr Kate Reynolds, Brighter Futures for Children’s Director of Education.
‘This training is relatively new but there are already 3,000 accredited teachers in 14 countries and we must do what we can to ensure all Reading schools have the tools they need to embed up-to date information about climate change into the curriculum,’ she added.
The event, which takes place from 1pm-4pm at Alfred Sutton Primary School, Wokingham Road, Reading, will be officially opened by Cllr Ashley Pearce, Reading Borough Council’s Lead Member for Education, who said:
'Reading Borough Council joined other local authorities in declaring a climate emergency earlier this year and committing to a carbon neutral town by 2030. This is a wonderful new initiative which will hopefully put a trained UN accredited climate change ambassador into every school in Reading, which will help reinforce in classrooms what is already a very clear message from school children and young people in Reading that everybody must take action to tackle climate change.'
The conference has been organised as part of the eduCCate Project, a partnership between Harwood Education and the UN CC:Learn (UNITAR) Team.
The partnership’s aim in the UK is for every school to have at least one lead teacher for climate change. Once qualified, the teachers will be collectively tasked with taking the UK into a global lead in helping pupils learn about the causes, extent and solutions to the climate issues facing the world today.
Training involves teachers signing up for free courses which take approximately 15-20 hours to complete. They learn at their own pace via tablet, mobile phone, or desktop computer.
Teachers have access to the most up to date information and targeted resources for teaching pupils about issues relating to climate change, plus the opportunity to join a closed community of other teachers to share knowledge and resources.
The partnership supports knowledge sharing, promotes the development of common climate change learning materials, and coordinates interventions through a collaboration of UN agencies and other partners. Teachers who undertake the accreditation will also have access to the eduCCate global community and school sustainability and eco initiatives.
Training themes include climate change and a range of topics, including science, finance, gender, human health, cities, international negotiations, adaptation planning, forests and education for children.
Reading’s children’s services no longer inadequate
A joint statement from Reading Brough Council and us.
Brighter Futures for Children, the Reading Borough Council-owned company which took over children’s services ten months ago, has successfully moved the service out of its ‘inadequate’ Ofsted rating in all four judgement areas.
Ofsted inspectors visited the service between September 16-27 for a full inspection and re-graded the service as ‘requires improvement to be good’. The results were published today (28/10/19).
‘This is a huge achievement - across the board - and we’re delighted that all the hard work that our staff and partners have put into improving the quality of children’s services in Reading has been recognised,’ said Antony Kildare, Managing Director of Brighter Futures for Children.
‘This has given staff a tremendous boost, in both morale and pride in their work. It’s also a great message for the children, young people and families we serve to know that the services we provide are getting better,’ he added.
Cllr Liz Terry, Reading’s Lead Councillor for Children’s Services, said: ‘We are delighted that Ofsted has recognised the huge efforts being made to help turn children’s services around in Reading. The important thing now is for that recognition to translate into better life outcomes for vulnerable children, young people and families in the town.
‘I am proud that the many staff who have worked in Reading over this difficult period now have this recognition of improvement. This could not have happened without the support of many partners, especially the ONE Reading Partnership.
“There is no doubt challenges remain, and the council will continue to work collaboratively with BFfC to continue to drive further improvements and to ensure this positive direction is sustained.’
Inspectors found evidence of improvement in most areas of practice. They found that senior leaders had ‘rightly focused on strengthening the recruitment and retention of staff, caseloads are reducing, and there has been an increase in management capacity.’
They also found that the company and council were ‘working collaboratively, and appropriate arrangements for scrutiny and challenge were in place’.
The four judgement areas, which all received the ‘requires improvement to be good’ rating are:
- The impact of leaders on social work practice with children and families
- The experience and progress of children who need help and protection
- The experiences and progress of children in care and care leavers
- Overall effectiveness.
The four ‘grades’ that Ofsted awards to children’s services are:
- Inadequate
- Requires improvement to be good
- Good
- Outstanding.
During the inspection, Deborah Glassbrook, who takes up her new role as Director of Children’s Services at Brighter Futures for Children in November, worked alongside the interim DCS Eleni Ioannides and the senior leadership team to brief inspectors and give them full access to cases, information, staff, service users and partners, as required.
She did so in her role as Director of Improvement and said: ‘We are all thrilled with this positive result. We know there is still a huge amount of work to be done to further improve children’s social care in Reading but it’s very encouraging to have confirmation that the improvements we are making are already starting to show and that the company’s leadership is collaborative, strong, stable and committed to making positive changes to the service.’
The full report can be found here: https://files.api.ofsted.gov.uk/v1/file/50119620
Phoenix College to join Maiden Erlegh Trust
Joint statement from Brighter Futures for Children and Maiden Erlegh Trust
The Regional Schools Commissioner has approved the move to bring Phoenix College into Maiden Erlegh Trust.
The newly-formed Phoenix Academy will be sponsored by the Trust, with the transfer completed on 1 January 2020.
Formal TUPE consultations with staff, unions, and the employer will begin shortly.
‘This is a very sensible and considered approach which will benefit all involved. We are very pleased with this decision and will be offering our full support to the academy as the changes take place and beyond,’ said Tony Kildare, Managing Director of Brighter Futures for Children, which has overall responsibility for the delivery of education services in Reading.
News of the sponsorship was welcomed by Reading Borough Council’s Lead Member for Education, Cllr Ashley Pearce, who said: ‘Phoenix College provides support and direction for some of Reading's most vulnerable children. ?We are pleased that it will be joining a local academy trust in Maiden Erlegh, that has a track record of collaboration, improvement and excellence for its schools.’
Chief Executive Officer of Maiden Erlegh Trust Mary Davies said: “It is a huge privilege to be able to work with Phoenix College as we know that it provides essential places for students across the Reading area. We are committed to inclusion and believe that schools should work with all young people so that they reach their personal potential; special education is an essential part of the educational landscape and we are delighted to be a part of it. We are looking forwards to working alongside the staff, students and parents at the College, as well as with expert partners to ensure the provision develops further.”.
Reading bucks national trend with higher GCSE grades this year
More Reading pupils achieved grades 9-4 in English and Maths this year and the overall attainment is higher than in previous years.
Figures from schools in the borough show that 65% of GCSE pupils achieved grades 9-4 in English and Maths, which is an increase of 4% on last year’s figure of 61%. Grades 9-4 are equivalent to the old A*- C grades.
The number achieving the higher 9-5 grades, similar to A* – bottom B/high C, was 53% compared with 47% last year.
The collective score, called an Attainment 8*, for Reading schools was 51, which was up from 49 last year. Reading is significantly above the national average which was 46.5 last year and early indications show that is likely to be similar this year.
This is the first year of GCSE results since education services in Reading have been run by Brighter Futures for Children. The not-for-profit company took over the delivery of children’s services, including children’s social care, early help, education and Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) service on behalf of Reading Borough Council in December 2018.
Tony Kildare, Managing Director of Brighter Futures for Children, said:
‘Well done to all pupils and their schools for these excellent results. We hope that you’ve got the grades you wanted to help you with your future choices but, if you didn’t, please don’t worry.
‘In addition to the support your school can offer, we have a service available to all young people in Reading. There are plenty of opportunities still available to you. Our advisory service can offer support and help on further training and apprenticeship opportunities.
‘Our advisors are based in Reading Central Library in Abbey Square on the third floor. You can contact them by email: ParticipationandEngagement@brighterfuturesforchildren.org or call 01189 372 204.’
Cllr Ashley Pearce, Reading’s Lead Councillor for Education, said:
‘GCSE results day is often a nerve racking but exciting day for our students. It is the culmination of years of hard work from pupils, teachers, parents and governors who are all vital elements in our young people's success. I would like to thank every one of these groups for their hard work in achieving some excellent results.’
*To get the Attainment 8 score, schools add up the points for each student’s 8 subjects and divide by 10 to get their score. A school's Attainment 8 score is the average of all of its students' scores. Students don't have to take 8 subjects, but they score zero for any unfilled slots.
Record number of Reading pupils get grades A*- E this year
THE number of students achieving A-level grades A*-E has increased in Reading, according to provisional figures collated by Brighter Futures for Children.
Ninety eight per cent of students gained A*-E grades this year compared with 94 per cent last year, an increase of 4%.
There was a very slight dip in A*-B grades, with 58 per cent of students achieved A*-B across the borough, in-line with the national picture, compared with 62 per cent last year but this year beats 2017’s figure of 57 per cent.
A total of 606 students took A Levels in Reading this year, compared with 691 last year and 673 in 2017.
The number of young people achieving A*-C passes was 78 per cent compared with 77 per cent in 2018.
This is the first year that results have come out where education services are run by Brighter Futures for Children, the not-for-profit company which delivers children’s services, including children’s social care, early help, education and Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) service on behalf of Reading Borough Council.
Tony Kildare, Managing Director of Brighter Futures for Children, said:
‘These results show just how good Reading schools are. They’re a culmination of individual students’ hard work but also a great deal of effort by the schools themselves, and organisations like ours, which offers support to schools, to help them thrive and prosper. It’s no wonder that requests for secondary school placements in Reading are increasing.
‘So we congratulate all those students who got the grades they wanted but, if you didn’t, don’t worry. There are plenty of opportunities still available to you. We have recently taken over an advisory service for young people, and we can offer support and help on further training and employment opportunities.
‘Our advisors are based in Reading Central Library in Abbey Square on the third floor. You can contact them by email: ParticipationandEngagement@brighterfuturesforchildren.org or call 01189 372 204.’
Cllr Ashley Pearce, Reading’s Lead Councillor for Education, said:
“Today the hard work of students and teachers in schools across Reading has paid off and I would like to congratulate all of those who have achieved great A-level results.
“Behind all the statistics are stories of individuals who have dedicated a great deal of time and effort over a number of years to achieve their grades. For those students that didn't quite get the grades they were hoping for, I urge them to seek the available support and take time to find the correct next steps in their career path.
“I wish all young people who received their results today every success for the future whatever path they choose to take next.”