STUDENTS were left crying tears of joy after finding out they had passed their GCSE exams.

The Connaught School for Girls in Leytonstone had 73 per cent of the 114 students who sat GCSEs achieved A* to C grades in English and maths, up from 65 per cent last year.

Molly O’Brien, 16, achieved six A* grades, four As and one B grade. She said: “My mother is on holiday in America so I am going to Skype her when I get home to tell her.

“She is going to be so excited. I worked really hard for this but I did not think I would do this well, all my revision has paid off.”

Maryam Jameal, 16, achieved 10 A* grades and two A grades.

She said: “I am quite shocked I got these results because I didn’t expect to.

“I just called my mum and she started crying. My parents are very proud of me but they are shocked themselves.

“Hard work is what will get you far in life.”

Laura Taylor, 16, who achieved nine A* grades and three A grades said: “I feel I did really well and now I plan on going to Nando’s to celebrate with my friends.

“I got the results I wanted. English language and design technology were my favourite subjects and I got As in them so I am happy.”

Anisa Ahmed achieved three A* grades, five As and three B grades.

She said: “I revised all day during every school holiday starting from last Christmas.

“My family supported me and my teacher Mrs Horsley was also very good to me.”

Mum Taira Ahmed added: “I am ecstatic and so proud of my daughter. I had two other daughters previously come to this school and they both did really well so we are very happy with the teaching here.”

Headteacher Ms Sally Walker said the students worked hard with the support of their parents and teachers.

She said: “They are very well-motivated students who have achieved fantastic results and I am very proud of them.

“I would like to thank the staff at Connaught for their dedication and the support they have given to the girls which has contributed significantly to their success.

“In addition, I would like to thank all our parents and carers for the support and encouragement they have given to their daughters.

"Finally, I congratulate all the girls and wish them every success in the future and a happy and fulfilling life.”

Leytonstone School are celebrating receiving the school’s best ever results.

Some 76 per cent of students at the school achieved at least five A* to C grades, including English and Maths.

In total, 43 students achieved at least three A* or A grades and 92 per cent received an A* to C grade in Science. The school saw 98 per cent of students achieving at least five GCSE grades.

Outstanding exam performances came from Head Girl, Megan Hack, and Rania Khan who both achieved nine A* to A grades.

The school's top performer was Rufus Shotter, who achieved 10 A* to A grades.

Rufus said: “My results were pretty similar to my predicted grades, but I did had things going through my head, thinking when I opened the envelope it would be all Bs and Cs.

“I am very happy with my results, five year of hard work have gone into it so it is nice to get something back at the end of it.”

Islam Fessih, who had been predicted straight C grades, was delighted to walk away with one A*, four As and two Bs.

He said: “I started experimenting with different revision techniques and I found flash cards worked well for me because I could revise anywhere.

“I was so happy when I opened the letter. It has been hard all year, I have not stopped working but I guess now it is time to have a break.”

Head teacher, Grainne Smyth, said: “We are incredibly proud of all of our students and their achievements.

“These fantastic results are down to the hard work of our students, the great support that the school receives from our parents and the commitment from Leytonstone staff to secure the very best results for our young people.”

At George Mitchell School in Leyton, 60 per cent of pupils gained GCSEs at grades A* to C in English and maths.

The school also scored a plus 0.61 on the new Progress 8 measure, which records students’ progress between the start of secondary education and GCSEs, over half a grade per pupil above expectations.

Ayesha Irfan, 16, Leyton, came in early every morning and stayed late to revise in the months leading up to her exams and was rewarded with two A* grades, four As and two Bs.

She said: "I was determined to do the best I could at my exams. It isn't just about how smart you are in life it's about how hard you are prepared to work.

"The most successful people are the ones that put the effort in to get the rewards. I can't say that I haven't had a lot of help along the way.

“The school have really helped me but you also have to be self-motivated."

GCSE students at Walthamstow School for Girls achieved among the school’s best ever results for the fourth year running.

Provisionally, 77 per cent have attained success at A* to C grade in five or more subjects including English and mathematics.

A total of 80 per cent of entrants from the school obtained give or more A* to C grades whilst 29 per cent of GCSE entries were A* to A grades and a quarter of entrants achieved five or more A* or As.  

Head teacher, Meryl Davies, said: “I am so proud of our students; yet again our hard-working and capable girls have achieved the examination success they deserve and which will stand them in good stead for their future education and careers.

“I also acknowledge the part played by the high calibre, dedicated teaching and support staff at the school, without whom these results would not have been possible, and also our supportive parents and carers. 

“Last year the school won several national awards for achievement and I am delighted to see that our results have improved still further this year.”

Students and staff at Buxton School in Leytonstone were “delighted” after 59 per cent of pupils received A* to C grades in English and Maths.

Executive headteacher, Kath Wheeler, said: “I am really pleased to see all of the hard work and dedication of our students and staff pay of once again.

“We wish all of our students the very best as they move on to college and university, or apprenticeships.”

Buxton student Lawrence Nyarko, who moved to London aged six from Ghana, was awarded one A*, four As and four Bs.

The grades mean Lawrence can study the subjects he needs at A Level to get into medical school and realise his dream of becoming a doctor to help fight disease in Ghana and the rest of Africa.

He said: "There are lots of children who are very sick back in Africa and they need help, particular from someone who understands what is going on. 

"Getting such good results has set me on the path to where I want to be. If I hadn't done so well it would be much harder.

"I have the teachers to thank for a lot of this. They knew how determined I was to succeed and they helped me a lot."

Frederick Bremer School in Walthamstow, which featured in the TV programme Educating the East End, is celebrating after students achieved high results in their GCSEs.

The school’s highest achiever Jahanzeb Khan got eight A* grades and two A grades and students Abdullah West and Alex Joerres both achieved 10 As each.

Headteacher Jenny Smith said: “Despite another challenging year of change in education, and against many of the expectations placed on the young people of our community, our pupils have made incredible progress.

“Some of our pupils have suffered significant personal challenges during the year, and despite these they have succeeded.

“We are delighted that they have done so well in such a challenging climate.”

Norlington School pupils matched the top GCSE grades achieved last year, which saw the Leyton school ranked as one of the top 100 nationally.

Norlington achieved a 0.45 on the new Progress 8 measures - the equivalent of half an extra grade per pupil above expected progress.

Ahmad Hossen, 16 from, Leyton, was awarded one A*, six As, and one B. He will stay on at Norlington Sixth Form to study Computer Science, Maths, Further Maths.

He said: "I feel great. It's a really good feeling to have this done and out of the way. I can enjoy the rest of the summer now and look forward to my A Levels.”

Principal Guya Persaud said: “Our aim is to be the best school in the country. This is what our students deserve.

“We work towards achieving this by having and maintaining very high expectations of our students and our staff.”

Got a GCSE related story? E-mail news editor Anna Slater on aslater@london.newsquest.co.uk