ROYAL Wootton Bassett Academy students breathed a sigh of relief after getting the grades they needed to pursue their dreams.

Out of the 98.91 per cent of students who passed with A* to E grades in their A levels, 25.43 per cent acheived A*s and As.

Sophie Little is heading to Kings College London to begin a maths degree after achieving three A*s.

She said: "I joined the academy in February of year 12 after changing schools because I had to move out of my parents' house to live with my aunt.

"It was hard to make friends and get the funding I needed at first but it all worked out in the end.

"I expected to get good grades but not this good! I'm excited to start the next part of my life."

Izzy Archer will study theology and religion at Oxford University after receiving two As and A*s each. She said: "It might seem like a weird subject for an atheist but it's a passion of mine, it's one of the most interesting topics and it covers a bit of everything, I find it fascinating.

"There were piles of revision papers covering my room and I did six to eight hours of revision a day in the months before the exams. It all paid off and now I can just breathe and relax.

"I was really nervous but I knew I'd been accepted before I went to collect my results so at least there wasn't that extra pressure.

"I'd like to get into investigative journalism and make documentaries that bring empathy and emotion to difficult topics."

Lucy Boyle bagged an A*, an A and a B to study Law at the University of Bristol.

She said: "I've been waiting so long to get these results, the nerves have been building throughout the summer and I felt pure relief when I got the results I wanted.

"The teachers have been so supportive, it's been great, I couldn't ask for a better school."

When including the BTEC results, the pass rate is 99.08 per cent and 22.61 per cent achieved A*s and As overall.

Head of sixth form Amanda Bell said: "All our students have done really well and I'm very proud of them. We are very pleased with the results this year because it's an improvement on last year which is lovely to see and it's testament to all the hard work of our students and staff.

"It's a great day to see them reap the rewards of their hard work and look at the next stage."

Headteacher George Croxford said: "I'm absolutely delighted, they've worked so hard and the vast majority achieved what they wanted.
"In a time where the government have cut funding in post-16 education and class sizes have got bigger but the exams are more difficult, it's an incredible achievement to keep our results at the level we are at "

Find out more about the academy's A level students, including competitive twins and a musician who became the first student to achieve an A* in music, in Friday's Swindon Advertiser.