Ballakermeen High School students have much to celebrate following the release of this year’s A Level result after 85% of its students secured their first-choice university places.

The Douglas school has also seen a notable improvement in academic performance, with the percentage of students receiving A* to B grades rising by 5%.

A total of 28% of all grades awarded were either an A* or an A.

Richard Karran, head of sixth form at Ballakermeen, said he was proud of the students’ achievements, noting the significant strides made since the disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

He said: ‘It has been a great day because we've improved our A* to B grades by 5%, and 28% of grades have been A* and A, so we're starting to see a return from the dark days of Covid.’

He emphasised that the school, like the others on the Isle of Man, faced considerable difficulties during the pandemic which were compounded by a turbulent teacher strike during the period.

However, he was adamant that the school has emerged stronger, thanks in part to the stability and focus of the past year.

‘For the last 12 months, things have been calm,’ he said.

‘It seems that everyone's batting on the same wicket, which is nice, and the students are starting to progress,’ Mr Karran said.

He likened the students's journey to that of Olympic athletes, emphasising that success is the result of years of hard work and careful planning. One of the most remarkable achievements this year has been the significant reduction in the number of students needing to go through the clearing process to get to university.

‘Just two kids in clearing’, Mr Karran noted with satisfaction.

‘Two years ago, we had 36 kids in clearing.

‘This year, we've got two. Those kinds of things are really important because it's all about every kid. And the most important thing for me is that every kid walks out with a career path, a career plan.’ Mr Karran also highlighted the strong job prospects for students remaining in the island, with 90% of the 48 students who have chosen to stay already having secured employment.

While pleased with the progress, he acknowledged that there is still work to be done, particularly in improving the number of C grades progressing to Bs.

‘I'm certainly very pleased with where we are, but there's still things to do,’ he added.