ALL the hours of study put in by Tavistock College students were paid off with interest last week when the school announced the highest A-level pass rate in its history.

Beating last year?s 95% success rate, a record in itself, this year the figure rose to 96%, with 64% of these passes recorded at grades A to C ? the number of A-grades obtained has increased by 20%.

College principal John Simes said he was ?absolutely delighted? at the news.

?We are very pleased indeed. I know the governors and staff are delighted ? I?ve never seen so many happy students around,? he said. ?The flow of students into higher education is going extremely well ? we are thrilled to bits.?

Mr Simes said he thought the pass percentage rate was possibly ?as high as it could possibly be?.

?I can?t imagine it going much higher. You could reach a point where you end up not giving people a chance because they might not succeed, and that?s not what we?re about,? he said.

He dismissed media claims that exams were becoming easier or that students were opting for lighter subjects.

?The notion that students somehow choose subjects that are somehow easier to study is nonsense. We?ve had significant increases in grades in the more difficult subjects and frankly, no-one is going to study a subject for two years which they didn?t like, just because it was easier,? he said.

The average points score per student under the UCAS tariff system was 281 last year, one of the highest in Devon. This year the figure is expected to reach the same high standard.

Some students have obtained particularly outstanding results. Gavin Leithall, who qualified to represent Britain at the International Physics Olympiad earlier this year, scored an incredible 100% on every one of his six physics A-level papers ? he gained four grade A A-levels.

Ben Rich also obtained four grade As, while Sarah Benzie, Laura Branfield, Lyndsay Smallacombe and Andrew Smith obtained three grade As.

Peter Sleep, chairman of governors at Tavistock College, said: ?These excellent results certainly reflect the very hard work I know has been put in by the students and staff and the governors congratulate them on their achievements.?

THERE was success for Kelly College who achieved the best A-level results in their 125-year history.

Not only was there a 100% pass rate at A-level, but the proportion of students gaining top grades was significantly higher.

Almost one third of pupils passed their exams at grade A (32%), and 61% achieved A and B grades ? a rise of 22% on the previous year.

Of the 51 candidates entered for A-level, six achieved straight A grades.

Headmaster Mark Steed said: ?I am delighted with the results. These radically improved results have been achieved without making the college more selective on academic grounds.

?The credit must go to the commitment of both staff and pupils who have given the academic life of Kelly a much greater priority over the last two years.?

Mr Steed was most pleased with the fact that pupils had achieved well at all levels of ability, across the whole range of subjects.

He added: ?The fact that there were only seven E grades out of a total of 150 A-levels taken is indicative that we are delivering a high quality education to all of our pupils.?

He said Kelly?s results would not appear in national league tables, branding the system as ?flawed?. ?Schools like Kelly are about a whole education. Kelly is about so much more than measuring the academic success of the brightest pupils.?

STUDENTS and staff at Callington Community College are celebrating their continued success at A-level.

Candidates achieved a pass rate of 96%, with 67% attaining grades A-C.

This gave an average points score of 213.7.

Among some outstanding results were Alice Parsons and Michelle Raspa who both achieved two grade As, and Sara Martin and Annabel Reeves who each got three Bs and one A grade.

Headteacher Steve Kenning paid tribute to his staff and pupils for their success.

?Our overall pass rate was outstanding, which cements our place as a leading school in the area,? he said.

?Tribute must be paid to students and staff for their efforts.

?We are a forward looking school and continue to progress in a positive way.?