In the 1950s children attended their nearest secondary school and four years later they left. They started work the following Monday. And that was that.
It’s more complex nowadays. Schools are expected to be attractive and parents must choose a school. How? Choosing implies knowledge. Diligent parents do research, read OFSTED reports, scrutinise school’s web pages and attend Open Evenings.
Good GCSE results are a selling point for some parents. But what if the school isn’t a stellar performer? What happens then?
They shamelessly duck and dive.
St. Edwards Academy have an out-of-date ‘Performance and Results’ page. This is supported by the government performance website, which tells the reader that the school’s grade is ‘Well above average’.2 Expertise is needed to understand the website. The 2022 OFSTED report, which is readable, is good.3
Meanwhile Marshalls Park Academy is, “…incredibly proud of all students….and our 2024 results include many notable success stories.”3 They follow up with a link to the government website.4 Its banding is, “Well Below Average”.5 Nonetheless the school reaches the national ‘Gold Standard’ GCSE English and Maths grade 5.6
Coopers Coburn,8 Drapers Academy9 and Harris Academy Rainham10 publish exam results in full. Parents, who care about GCSE results, know exactly where they stand. There’s no ambiguity.
GCSE results aren’t commercial secrets, which need protecting. They’re part of the way in which parents chose a school for their child.
Addendum: Research note
This was written on the 27th October 2024. The schools quoted are a sample of the 18 academies in Havering. This topic is discussed in more detail here.11
Notes
1 Performance & Results | St Edward’s Church of England Academy
2 St Edward’s Church of England Academy – Compare school and college performance data in England – GOV.UK A dedicated parent would look at this table Download data – Compare school and college performance data in England – GOV.UK
3 St Edward’s Church of England Academy – Open – Find an Inspection Report – Ofsted
4 Marshalls Park Academy – Exam Results It continues, “Our two top performing students were Ralph Gilroy and Caoimhe Juson, with an impressive 16 grade 8 and 9’s between them.” The misplaced apostrophe is unfortunate in this context
5 Marshalls Park Academy – Compare school and college performance data in England – GOV.UK
6 loc.cit. This relates to 2023. It’s included because the school directed the reader to it.
7 loc.cit.
8 GCSE-Examination-Results-2024.pdf
9 Headline-Results-2024-main.pdf
10 Examinations Results – Harris Academy Rainham
11 How Havering’s Academies Conceal their 2022 GCSE Results – Politics in Havering NB Harris Academy have changed their presentation of results since 2022 and are now an example of best practice.
Politics in Havering 