Bishop Luffa Students Overcome Adversity to Secure Top Grades
FROM THE PRU TO BISHOP LUFFA SIXTH FORM
Wiktor Lis secured four 7s, three 8s and a grade 9 – despite being permanently excluded from primary school.
On Wiktor’s first day at Bishop Luffa, when his new friends asked which primary school he was from, he had to admit that it was the county’s pupil referral unit. The chances of students who have been excluded at such a young age achieving any grades at GCSE are slim; very few go on to get top grades and study for A-levels.
Teaching Assistant Gil Horsfield had regular one-to-one sessions with Wiktor throughout his time at Bishop Luffa. Mr Horsfield said: ‘it has been a pleasure to watch Wiktor grow-up and mature into an asset to our school and wider society. So many children don’t get the chance: they are written-off at a young age and they start to believe that they can’t change their lives. Wiktor was determined that he was going to be different.’
TOP GRADES FOR UKRAINE
When Dasha and Mariia began secondary school in 2019, life seemed very simple. They lived in Ukraine and hoped one day to go on to university. Dasha loved animals and wanted to be a vet, and Mariia enjoyed singing and hoped to study music. Five years later that dream is still alive, despite the adversity that they’ve suffered. Both students are celebrating an incredible set of GCSE results that means that they will now begin their A-levels at Bishop Luffa in September.
They are not the only Ukrainian students at Bishop Luffa School who are celebrating. Veronika, Lidiia, Yehor and Andrii all joined the school from Ukraine in 2022 and all secured at least six GCSEs. Lidiia and Veronika even managed to gain the top grade of 9 in some of their subjects.
Susie Cooke, who oversees the school’s work with students who are new to English, said: ‘these students have left their homes and families and come to England as refugees. They have had to move from home to home in Britain and still live with the daily fear of bad news from Ukraine and an uncertain future here. To have managed this level of academic success, whilst taking exams in a foreign language, is a breath-taking achievement. It is humbling working with them.’
THE ARTS ARE FLOURISHING AT BISHOP LUFFA
Ben Webster and Myah Brent are looking forward to studying A-level Music at Bishop Luffa, having just secured grade 9 and 8 respectively at GCSE. Less than 5% of students in the country study Music GCSE, and the number of students going on to study A-levels in Music has dropped by nearly 50% since 2010.
The Head of Arts, Jo Lawlor, said: ‘Arts students like Ben and Myah give so much to the school beyond the classroom. School should be full of students, acting, dancing and playing music – when else in your life are you going to do these things if you don’t do them at school? It is important to us at Bishop Luffa that students like Ben and Myah should be given the opportunity to follow their passions.’
OVERALL ACHIEVEMENT
Hannah Carr did what very few students manage: she got a top grade in every subject she took!
Head Teacher Austen Hindman said: ‘Getting top grades in every subject is a huge achievement. Many of us excel in one area, but the combination of talent and hard-work that Hannah has shown is incredible.’
‘Hannah’s quiet confidence sums up this year group. When Covid hit they were in Year 7. They were just building new friendships when school was shut down. They missed out on watching other students go through the rites of passage that we associate with school, like sitting exams or going to the Prom. To have come through that is an achievement in itself; to have done that and still managed to build solid friendships and secure incredible GCSE results is quite remarkable. They are an inspiring group of students.’