Year 11 have once again recorded our best ever results in GCSE. Our students maintained their excellent results of 72.4% (up on last year) Basics English and Maths (grade 4+) as well as a 6% improvement on Basics English and Maths (grade 5+) to 48%.

With the new grading system in place, we are delighted that 28 grade 9s have been awarded, including some students who achieved 6 or 7 Grade 9s. 223 Grade 7+ were awarded to students and 60 students achieved at least one Grade 7+.

There were superb departmental results. 80% of students passed English (grade 4+) and 81% passed Maths (grade 4+). Triple Science and Spanish achieved 100% pass rates and 13 subjects achieved pass rates over 85%. We are committed to maintaining a broad and balanced curriculum, where students are able to achieve their maximum potential and enjoy the process. The continued success of our non EBacc subjects such as Art, Music, Drama, GCSE PE, Technology, Computing, Business Studies, Child Development, RS and Construction demonstrates our commitment to providing high quality qualifications that meet the needs of students above the needs of the school.

Best of all has been the progress made by students of all abilities. Many of whom have achieved top grades when they came to us below the national average. We are delighted to say that we have significantly diminished the difference between students in receipt of the pupil premium.

An important extra feature of this year group is that 25 of them did not start their secondary education at Dene Magna, and have gone on to succeed with us.

Thank you to the students, parents/carers and staff who have worked in partnership to make these results possible. Well done to all and please keep in touch!

Reflections on the DfE Performance Tables for 2018

Each Year the Department for Education (DfE) publish the results of every Secondary School for students at the end of KS4. The ‘final’ version of these results is published in January and this takes account of any remarks for individual students, as well as national changes.

Dene Magna is delighted that our 2018 outcomes are, yet again, superb. Here are some of the headlines from the DfE tables1 and an explanation of what they mean:

Our Progress 8 Score for 2018 was 0.23. This is an excellent achievement and means that we are the only school in the Forest of Dean to achieve a Progress 8 outcome that is ‘Above average’.

If we dig a bit further we see that our boys (with a P8 of 0.14) were in the top 18% of schools in the country and our girls (with a P8 of 0.35) were in the top 30% of schools. Also of interest is that there were 80 boys in the year group and 54 girls.

So, our boys did very well compared to other boys in the country. The next challenge is for boys to achieve as well as the girls. As can be seen from above this is a national issue that Dene Magna is leading the way on!

We are really proud of the number of students who enter the EBacc subjects for GCSE. This pathway is not for everyone, however it shows our firm commitment to a high quality, broad and balanced curriculum. Our high aspirations for each and every learner run through our curriculum and our Average Point Score (APS) for our EBacc subjects (English, Maths, Science, Humanities and Languages) of 4.28 puts us in the top 30% of schools for Attainment. It is also the highest EBacc APS in all the Forest Schools.

Grade 5 (equivalent to a top C and bottom B grade in the old GCSEs) in English and Maths (5+ Basics) provides a key measure for the DfE.

In 2018 we saw an 8% increase in our 5+ Basics measure. This speaks for itself, however there is more to be proud of here.

Looking at this measure we are in the top 28% of schools. However this does not take account of Prior Attainment. The progress our students made to this measure is 8% above expectation and puts us in the top 20% for progress (FFT data2). It also pleasing to note that our 5+ Basics is the highest in the Forest and, looking at Comprehensives across Gloucestershire, is the 6th highest.

This measure is so important because it opens up the door to A Levels and higher study. What a brilliant foundation for our students as they begin the next step on their learning journey

We also still use the measure of students achieving a grade 4 (equivalent to a grade C in the old GCSEs)or better in English and Maths (4+ Basics). In 2018 this figure was 72%, a school record. Again, looking at progress, this is 9% above expected and ranks us on the 13th centile nationally. (FFT Data).

The 4+ Basics measure is really important. These students can now access a range of courses and apprenticeships and know that they have reached a benchmark which will open so many doors in the future.

It is important to note that 12 subjects had 4+ results above 80% and 11 subjects had 5+ results above 60%.

Results over Time

Creating a sustainable environment where each and every learner achieves their maximum potential is the central aim of everything we do. It is really pleasing therefore to see that over time our outcomes reflect the hard work of students, parents and staff.

Looking over the last three years our results show the following: (all from FFT Data)

• Progress to 4+ Basics +9% (top 11% of schools in the country)
• Progress 8 0.17 (top 30% of Schools in the country)
• Progress 8 in English 0.18 (top 30% of Schools in the country)
• Progress 8 in Maths 0.43 (top 13% of schools in the country)
• Although no longer a measure, it is interesting to note that our progress to 5+ GCSEs including English and Maths over the last three years puts us in the top 9% of schools nationally.

And so much more…

Of course it is not all about results, it is also about ‘…enjoying the process’. So let’s not forget the trips, both near and far, the visitors, the sports successes, the school productions, the Technology and Art shows, the Science competitions, the clubs, the work with partner schools, the teacher training, work experience, the sponsored walks, the enrichment… the list is endless. All of this is what Dene Magna is all about.

Well done Year 2018. You were a pleasure to teach and an inspiration to the whole school. Good luck for the future and let us know how you get on and how you have gone out into the world and made a difference.

Mr Fred Mitchell
January 2019

DfE Performance Tables:

FFT is an educational charity providing analysis of all data across England & Wales.
www.fftaspire.org