WILTSHIRE secondary school students are performing above the national average at GCSE and A levels.

According to the latest government figures 66 per cent of them earned A*- C grades in both English and maths GCSEs – nationally the figure was 59 per cent.

They have also done well in the English Baccalaureate, which measures the proportion of pupils awarded an A*- C in core academic subjects including maths, English, science, a language, and history or geography.

A total of 26 per cent of all Wiltshire students achieved this threshold compared to 23 per cent nationally.

The government introduced new measures this year taking into account a wider range of results than before and focussing on both exam results and progress across a number of subjects.

Carolyn Godfrey, corporate director at Wiltshire Council said: “I am delighted we can once again celebrate good results in Wiltshire.

“Wiltshire pupils consistently achieve well but we are never complacent and we remain focused on improvement to ensure our students continue to achieve and are well prepared for the next chapter of their lives.”

Laura Mayes, cabinet member for children’s services said: “Many congratulations to Wiltshire’s hard working pupils and to the schools which provide the stimulating academic environment which helps our young people achieve their potential. The Ofsted annual report states Wiltshire students are learning in good or outstanding schools which these excellent results confirm.”

Under the new Attainment 8 standard, which judges their average grades over eight GCSE subjects including maths and English, the figure was 51.4 per cent against the national level of 48.5 per cent.

They were also slightly ahead on the Progress 8 measure, which shows pupils’ progress from the end of Key Stage 2 to when they take their GCSEs.

Wiltshire sixth form students maintained high levels of achievement in their A level exams, with more than 20 per cent of them earning AAB grades or better while 10 per cent achieved three or more As.

The results come as Ofsted’s recent annual report showed 99 per cent of secondary students were in good or outstanding schools.