‘Snowflake’ secondary school refuses to publish GCSE marks because ‘ALL pupils should be celebrated’

A British school has been blasted over its ‘woke‘ decision not to publish GCSE results this year because ‘all pupils should be celebrated’.

It comes after schools up and down the country publicly revealed the exam results of their pupils, as has always traditionally been the case. 

But Uppingham Community College, in Rutland, say they are celebrating an ‘exceptional’ set of GCSE results despite two years of disruption due to the Covid pandemic.

The college has refused to release headline figures of what pupils have achieved due to the ‘unlevel playing field’ in education during this period.

The mixed secondary, which caters for 900 pupils between 11-16, has also decided not to promote pupils who have achieved the highest grades.

Headteacher Ben Solly defended the decision saying ‘all pupils should be celebrated for their achievements’ and comparing results with previous years would be ‘irrelevant’.

He added: ‘During the past two to three years there has not been a level playing field in education.

‘Young people, their families and school communities have faced unique situations which make any comparisons between schools, or results from previous years, invalid and irrelevant.

On a day where GCSE results were shared by schools up and down the country, Uppingham Community College (pictured), Rutland, refused to publish their grades

Headteacher of the college Ben Solly defended the decision by saying ‘all pupils should be celebrated for their individual achievements’

‘We have chosen not to make such publications today because we strongly believe that all pupils should be celebrated for their individual achievements.

‘Each and every pupils will have faced their own challenges, barriers and set-backs, and we are immensely proud of all of them for persevering and doing their very best regardless of the obstacles they faced.

‘It is easy to forget that the last ‘normal’ school year this cohort received was when they were in Year 8 in 2018 to 19.

‘Thankfully we pulled together and ensured our pupils received an excellent education throughout this period, this is reflected in the very high standards pupils have achieved in their GCSE exams.’

However the decision not to publicise the GCSE results drew a mixed response from parents on social media who accused the school of ‘pandering to the woke brigade’.

One mum said: ‘Here we go again, yet another example of an institution pandering to the woke brigade.

‘Wrapping everyone up in cotton wool and telling them they are all equally brilliant. What a joke.’

Another added: ‘I feel for those who have worked hard to get the best grades and won’t get public recognition now due to some PC nonsense.’

A third wrote: ‘Just heard Uppingham School are not publicizing (sic) their GCSE results – welcome to snowflake Britain 2022.’

Another put: ‘Why doesn’t this surprise me anymore. Probably trying not to offend the low-achievers to avoid any upset. Stop this pampering, they are nearly adults now.’

However one person added: ‘He has a point, these last two years have been like no other so to compare them to previous years is unfair. Well done everyone.’

And another said: ‘There has been a lot of disruption during this period so I can see why. Each pupil knows how they have done and that’s all that really matters.’

GCSE results were released at 8am on Thursday morning and as expected, this year’s pass rate had fallen since 2021, but remain higher than pre-pandemic levels.

Results this year were expected to be significantly lower as grade inflation due to the pandemic comes to an end. 

Exams this year were graded more generously following on from two years of teacher-based marks in a bid to provide a safety net for students in the move back towards pre-pandemic arrangements.  

Overall GCSE results are higher than in 2019, with outcomes at grade 7 and above at 26.0% compared with 20.6% in 2019, and outcomes at grade 4 and above at 73.0% compared with 67.0% in 2019.