A-Level results day 2017: Success across the board at King Alfred School

An informal atmosphere and an emphasis on trips and extra-curricular activities were the key to success at a Golders Green school progressive independent school, according to staff.

The ‘vast majority’ of students at King Alfred School on North End Road got the grades to go to their first choice universities, according to upper school head Rod Jackson. “We don’t have a uniform, students call teachers by their first names - we feel this leads to each students being able to achieve their very best,” he said.

Lauren Isaacs and Nell Sternberg were among the happy students at the compact and green school site on Thursday morning. Lauren received an A*, an A and a B and will be heading to her first choice university, Manchester, to study philosophy and social anthropology.

“It sounds like a mouthful, but social anthropology is a walk in the park, apparently,” she laughed. Her friend Nell, meanwhile, had not experienced the nervous anticipation of results day as she had completed a BTEC in performing arts, with grades awarded over the year. Nell said she was ‘very happy and excited’ to be heading to Falmouth School of Art in Cornwall.

Leon Barody, meanwhile, got the grades to go to his first choice, Leeds College of Art, to study photography- although he said he was considering changing his mind and going to Coventry instead. “I’ve heard it’s the best photography course in the country,” Leon told the Ham&High. His friend Joshua Cousens was unsure of his plans, saying his main aim was ‘to experience life’.

Another King Alfred School graduate, Stella Arnold, will be heading to Sussex to do a psychology foundation course after getting the requisiite three C’s in her subjects French, history and psychology - though she was just a couple of marks off a B in French. “I was very nervous this morning, but I’ve got what I need,” Stella said.

This was the first year that all exams were sat at the end of the year, and many of the independent school’s staff said it had been tough on the current cohort as a ‘guinea pig generation’.

“There’s been a lot more work for us,” said exams officer Shyama Chandrasekhar. “It has been quite administratively tedious.”