PUPILS at a South Lakes school have exceeded all expectations and set a new record for GCSE results.

This year at Ulverston Victoria High School a record breaking 79 per cent of pupils received five A* to C grades, up ten per cent from 2015.

The drive to ensure that all pupils excel in their core subjects has paid off, with nine out of ten getting a C or above in maths.

For Matthew Hardwick, head of school at UVHS, these results were the result of countless hours of hard work from pupils, staff and parents.

He said: "The entire year group has outstripped expectations, even though we knew that they were a fantastic group of young people in their relationships both with staff and with each other.

"These results reflect not only the hard work of our students, but also the incredible dedication, skill and professionalism of all the staff at UVHS, as well as the amazing support given by the families of our students, without whom we could not achieve as we have done.”

One of the many success stories from this year was Tom Maddock, 16, of Ulverston. He walked away with eight A*s and three A grades.

He said: "I was expecting to do OK. This was a surprise, I'm not going to lie.

"I ground myself down thinking I was going to do badly, I didn't think I put enough effort in as I could have."

Now that Tom is armed with outstanding grades, he is planning to go into the sixth form at UVHS. He plans to study maths, further maths, physics and music, with a eye on becoming a physicist.

Another outstanding pupil was Alice Steen, 16, who scored exceptionally well, getting eight A*s and three As.

She said: "I'm not sure what to do right now. I wanted an A* in maths but other than that I didn't care."

Other pupils who topped the class were Bobby Taylor, 16, with five A*s, four As and two Bs; Sophie Wilson, 16, received eight A*s and three As along with her best friend Isobel Bryson, 16, with seven A*s, three As and one merit in ICT.

Read the full list of results from UVHS here

Headteacher Denis Fay was delighted that his pupils had all done so well.

He said: "I fell very pleased with the superb results the children have got. I'm proud of the teachers who worked so hard to help them deliver that.

"I want to send my congratulations to the students of UVHS but also to the students of all the other schools in the area."

Mr Fay believed the strong school spirit was one of the reasons behind their great success.

"They showed true allegiance to their school and its values; that's why nine out of 10 students got a C or above in maths," Mr Fay said.

He was confident that the Year 11s now passing out are among some of of the best in the area, and a credit to their school.

"Their behaviour and attitude towards each other and the staff was exemplary. They are a credit to their parents for being the most well-rounded group of teenagers."