RECORDS tumbled at schools in Marlow this morning as students celebrated their best ever scores and bucked a national trend for falling grades.

Sixth formers at Sir William Borlase’s Grammar School achieved its highest ever scores, with 83% of all exams awarded A* - B grades.

And just down the road, Great Marlow School built on their excellent GCSE scores last year to post record results in AS Levels for year 12s.

Borlase head Peter Holding said: “This is a wonderful set of results, showing an overall increase on last year's previous record figures despite press statements from exam boards warning that we should expect things to have been much tougher this year.

“The vast majority of our students have now secured places at their chosen universities. I am very proud of all the hard work and dedication that they have put in to achieve these results, and also all of the outstanding support they have been given by their teachers over the years."

Dr Holding also praised the extra curricular activities of his sixth formers and their success in representing the school in leadership, the arts and sporting competitions.

Borlase saw a staggering 52 pupils walk away with straight A grades or better, flying in the face of national figures which show a drop in the number of the very tops grades as the overall pass rate fell for the first time in 30 years.

One Borlase success story belonged to maths supremo Michael Laisch, who bagged A* in both maths and further maths, an A in additional further maths and who will now go on to study maths at Cambridge.

As well as its best ever AS levels, a successful day at Great Marlow School on Bobmore Lane saw most students walk away with their intended A Level goals, according to head of sixth form Owen Hollyman.

Deputy head Kevin Ford said: “It is a very special day to see them come to fruition after two years of hard work. There are some very excited students who are looking firward to what the future holds.

“We are very pleased with the results and the AS levels are the best the school has ever had. We had a fantastic GCSE group last year and they are carrying that through to their A Levels.

"The A2 scores are very good as well, and from hard work of the teachers and students we’re improving the sixth form year on year."

Mr Ford added that work due to begin on a new sixth form block in the autumn term will provide ‘first class’ facilities for years 12 and 13 and help to attract more students from elsewhere to the growing intake.

Mr Hollyman said pupils with the best grades are entertaining offers at Cambridge or Oxford univeristies.

Smiling students congregated at the school entrance clutching their fateful envelopes, including Deanna Westfold who turned down a place at Borlase to stay at the Bobmore Lane school for years 12 and 13.

The 18-year-old received an A in geography, B in Biology and B in drama, which secured her a place at Plymouth and her dream course of marine biology.

And Amy Piercey from Lane End said is off out to celebrate with her friends after getting an A in business and completing her set of impressive results with a pairs of B grades.