PUPILS in Swindon have achieved higher than average GCSE results despite a suspected five per cent drop in grades nationally compared to last year.

According to the latest statistics published by the Department for Education on Thursday, 52.6 per cent of pupils across the country achieved the gold standard of five GCSEs graded A* to C, including in English and maths, in this year’s exams.

This is compared to 59.2 per cent of secondary school pupils a year earlier.

But many of Swindon’s schools reported an increase in their grades, with 60.9 per cent of pupils achieving five GCSEs graded A* to C in this year’s exams across the town.

This year Ridgeway School celebrated 75 per cent of their students achieving A* to C grades across five GCSEs, and Highworth Warneford School achieved similarly impressive results.

About 57 pr cent of Isambard Community School pupils attained the benchmark, as did 64 per cent of students at Lydiard Park Academy.

Meanwhile, Swindon Academy students bucked the national trend with a four per cent rise in results, with 41 per cent of students achieving five GCSE A* to C grades.

The drop in national grades has been put down to changes in the education system and how schools are measured, with pupils’ first attempt at an exam only being counted in the official rankings for the first time.

Results from hundreds of vocational qualifications that used to be included in the data as GCSE equivalents have also been discounted.

Across the country local authorities are still gathering evidence to make accurate year-on-year comparisons to rank schools by.

A Swindon Council spokesman said: “We’re not in a position to see the true picture with the GCSE results because work is going on to validate the results nationally and at a local level.

“A further complication is that the national method used to measure the results has changed, which means we’re unclear how we might make valid comparisons between this year’s results and last year’s. ”

Brian Lightman, of the Association Of School and College Leaders, said: “It is the Government’s changes to the exam system that has led to the drop in results.

“It is not a reflection of the quality of teaching, nor the amount of effort and hard work put in by students.

“The statistical manipulation of results has led to a lack of predictability that few can make sense of.”

However Education Secretary Nicky Morgan reassured pupils they would not be affected by the drop in results and they would still be able to include their grades at re-sits and equivalent qualifications in university and job applications.

She said: “We have made changes to a system that rewarded the wrong outcomes.

“Today’s results show big variations in results but changes in performance tables will have no impact on individual pupils’ results.”