SEND students celebrate GCSE and A-level success
Students with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) in Hackney are celebrating their successes in their A-Levels, GCSEs and BTECs this year as provisional results show a continuing upward trend, strong performance and high ambition from everyone.
Charlotte Hamilton, who attends Clapton Girls’ Academy, E5, is autistic and dyspraxic. She said: “I sat five GCSEs and I got a 5, a 7 and three 8s. I am overwhelmed – I did that on a 12% school attendance. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for the support provided by the SEND team and my subject teachers.” She hopes to move on to study History, Geography and English Literature at A-Level and work towards a History degree.
Milo Lawrence has an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHC Plan) and has been supported throughout his time at The Urswick School, E9, by the school’s SEN department and Hackney’s speech and language therapy (SaLT) service. Milo’s results in A-Level Photography, BTEC Level 3 in Sport, and Level 3 Applied Diploma in Criminology means he will pursue his passion for animation and computer design in his first choice of course, a BA in The Art of Visual Effects at the Escape Studios in Greenwich.
To all Hackney children with special educational needs who have excelled this year, we are in awe of you! To those who haven't quite got what they want and worked for, please don't give up. There are so many more opportunities out there and people who want to help.
Haggerston School, E2, student Calvin Weise is autistic. He achieved A*AB grades in his English, Sociology, and Religious Studies A-Levels, and has secured a place at Queen Mary University to study Politics and Sociology, his first choice.
Calvin said: “Our teachers are very kind and supportive but also incredibly knowledgeable about their subjects. I want to thank them all for their wonderful support of me through the seven years I have been at this school.”
Haggerston School headteacher, Ciara Emmerson, added: “We are all so incredibly proud of Calvin. He has overcome social and academic barriers to achieve these very strong results, and has made incredible progress since starting with us in Year 7. Much of it is down to his tenacity but huge credit also goes to the staff here who have worked hard with him.”
2023 outcomes data for young people with SEND will be published by the DfE later in the year.
In 2022, Hackney students receiving SEND Support and those with EHC Plans achieved results and grades well above similar students across the country.
The separate SEND-specific data for the academic year 2021/22 shows that:
- Hackney was ranked 6th in the country for students with EHC Plans taking EBacc. subjects and were 1st compared to areas with similar populations;
- For students with EHC Plans taking GCSEs Hackney was ranked 10th in the country for their Average Point Score (which relates to the grades achieved) and 1st amongst areas with similar populations;
- Hackney was ranked 11th in the country for the progress students with an EHC Plan made;
- The percentage of Hackney students on SEND Support achieving Grade 5+ in GCSE English and maths was 28%. This is 5% above the national figure of 23%;
- The percentage of Hackney students with EHC Plans achieving Grade 5+ in GCSE English and maths was 13%. This is 6% above the national figure of 7%.
This demonstrates Hackney’s ongoing commitment to high-quality opportunities for all students.