SWINDON Academy celebrated its best-ever A-level results this year.

According to the academy's principal Ruth Robinson, 70 per cent of students received an A* to B, which is up from last year's 58 per cent, and 81 per cent of students received an A* to C, with a 100 per cent pass rate among the 2016-2017 Year 13s.

David Williams, from Moredon, did exceptionally well in his exams and is now getting ready to head off to Aberystwyth University in September to study Zoology.

The 18-year-old achieved an A in Maths and an A* in Physics and Biology.

He also passed two extra exams in Biology and Maths in February to qualify for a scholarship with £1,000 of university funding a year, an unconditional offer at Aberystwyth University, and a guaranteed place in the uni's halls.

David said: "I wasn't quite sure how well I'd done in my A-levels because my mock exam results weren't quite what I wanted.

"I'm really pleased and everyone down at Aberystwyth University was really friendly so I'm looking forward to starting there."

Principal Ruth Robinson said: "I class him as one of our star pupils because of his intelligence, dedication and hard work, and his joy and love of learning.

"It's lovely to see all that come to fruition and he can act as a role model for younger students to see how much they can achieve."

David said: "I was hoping for straight-As so the A*s were a nice surprise."

His friend, Beth Lane, said: "It wasn't a surprise to the rest of us, we knew he'd do really well."

Beth got a B in English Literature, a C in History and a Distinction* grade in Music.

The 18-year-old from Green Meadow revealed her plans for the future.

She said: "This morning, I got a text from Cardiff University saying I'd been accepted.

"I ran down stairs and scared my mum half to death, I was so excited.

"I'm very interested in writing so I'd like to do more of that, or focus more on music, something creative."

Beth will be studying English Literature and Creative Writing at the Welsh university.

Chiarna Deller, from Penhill, achieved an extended diploma in sport with three Distinction*s, which are equivalent to three top-grade A-levels.

Miss Deller will go on to study Sport and Physical Education at Cardiff Metropolitan University after exceeding the grades needed for her conditional offer for a place at the university.

She said: "I feel pretty good!

"I've already ordered my new sports kit ready for September, I've been playing football since I was a kid and I was a sports ambassador for the academy.

"It wasn't much of a surprise because I already knew the marks for my portfolio but today kind of solidifies it, it's great."

Annabel Titcombe, from Gorse Hill, achieved an A* for an Extended Project Qualification, which focused on the London riots, and two BTEC Level 3 Diplomas - one with a distinction in Business and the other with a Distinction* in IT.

She said: "I'm going to Buckinghamshire New University to study Criminology, I'd like to go into online intelligence, it's really interesting."

Beth, Annabel and David are the first in the their immediate families to go to university.

Ruth added: "These are the best A-level results in the history of the academy and we are absolutely thrilled.

"We are especially thrilled for the young people at the academy, it opens so many doors for them to go on to higher education, employment, and apprenticeships.

"Staff, too, have put in a tremendous amount of effort to support and inspire our students to set their sights high and these results are a credit to them."