Young people across Embark’s four secondary schools are celebrating their GCSE and Level 2 results, marking the culmination of years of learning, hard work and personal growth.
At Aldercar High School, Anthony Gell School, Buxton Community School and Parkside Community School, young people have achieved results that will enable them to progress to sixth form, college, apprenticeships, training and employment.
Results Day is about far more than numbers. Behind every grade is an individual story of effort, aspiration, resilience and support. From those achieving the highest possible grades to young people overcoming challenges or securing the qualifications needed for their chosen destination, there is so much to celebrate across our school communities.
We are immensely proud of every young person and grateful to the teachers, support staff, families and carers who have encouraged them throughout their journey.
Anthony Gell School: achievement and exciting futures
Young people, staff and families at Anthony Gell School are celebrating another excellent set of GCSE and BTEC results, reflecting the hard work, determination and aspirations of the Class of 2026.
Overall attainment at the school was above the national average, with young people achieving strongly across a broad range of academic and vocational qualifications.
These outcomes will enable the year group to take confident next steps into sixth form, further education, apprenticeships and employment. The results continue Anthony Gell School’s proud tradition of helping young people fulfil their potential and develop the knowledge, skills and confidence needed for future success.
At the heart of these achievements are the strong relationships developed between young people and staff throughout their five years at the school. Expert teaching, high expectations and a culture of support and encouragement have enabled the year group to flourish both academically and personally.
Headteacher Malcolm Kelly expressed his immense pride in the Class of 2026, describing their achievements as the result of years of hard work, resilience and determination. He said it had been a privilege to watch them grow into confident, capable and ambitious young adults.
Many young people will return to Anthony Gell School’s thriving Sixth Form, while others will begin new chapters through further education, apprenticeships and other post-16 opportunities.
The whole Anthony Gell School community congratulates the Class of 2026 and wishes every young person continued success.
Buxton Community School: strongest-ever English results
Buxton Community School is celebrating an outstanding year of GCSE and vocational results, including its strongest-ever performance in English.
Almost 70% of the year group achieved grade 4 or above in English, representing a significant improvement on last year. Mathematics also performed strongly, with around 7% more young people achieving grade 4 or above than in 2025.
Young people excelled across the wider curriculum too. All entrants achieved grade 4 or above in Art, Biology, Philosophy and Physics, while Music, Film Studies and Chemistry recorded impressive numbers of the highest grades. Vocational courses remained another strength, with excellent performances in Food and Child Development.
Across the school, the cohort secured 26 grade 9s and an exceptional 175 grades at 7 to 9.
Among those celebrating were Finley, with four grade 9s and six grade 8s; Harry, with four grade 9s, four grade 8s and a grade 7; Max, with four grade 9s and three grade 8s; and James, with three grade 9s and four grade 8s.
Excellent individual results were also achieved by Scarlett, Wilf, Libby, Toby, Mariia and Will. The school is equally proud of the many young people who made exceptional progress during their time at Buxton Community School.
The school’s headteacher praised the entire year group, recognising that the results were the culmination of years of hard work, determination and resilience.
Many young people will now continue their studies at Buxton Community School Sixth Form, while others will progress to colleges, apprenticeships and specialist training.
Congratulations to the Class of 2026, who move forward with every reason to be proud.
Parkside Community School: celebrating every young person’s journey
Parkside Community School in Chesterfield is celebrating the hard work, determination and individual achievements of its Year 11 cohort.
Young people achieved successes across a wide range of subjects, reflecting the commitment and perseverance they have shown throughout their secondary education.
Among the Class of 2026 are young people who secured exceptional grades, those whose results have enabled them to take their chosen next steps and those who overcame significant challenges to reach their goals. Each of these achievements is a source of enormous pride for the Parkside community.
Staff were delighted to share in the celebrations as the year group prepared to progress to sixth form, college, apprenticeships, training and employment.
Headteacher Andy Kelly said he was incredibly proud of everything the young people had achieved. He recognised the hard work, determination and resilience behind every result and said the Class of 2026 had made themselves, their families and the whole Parkside community proud.
The school also recognises the dedication of its teaching and support staff, whose encouragement and commitment have helped young people reach their potential, alongside the invaluable support provided by parents and carers.
Every young person’s journey is different, and Parkside is proud to celebrate the individual successes of this year group. The whole school community wishes the Class of 2026 every success as they begin their next chapter.
Aldercar High School: best-ever results in key measures
Aldercar High School is celebrating an impressive set of GCSE and Level 2 examination results, including its best-ever performance across a number of key measures.
More than one third of the year group achieved grade 5 or above in both English and mathematics, while approximately half achieved grade 4 or above in both subjects. Both measures represent significant improvements on last year.
Across all GCSE and Level 2 qualifications, the average result was above grade 4, with 40% of grades awarded at grade 5 or above. More than one in ten grades were at grade 7 or above.
Isabella Jones, Seth Reeves, Kieran Jacobs, Grace Collins, Ruby Simpson, Dominic Taylor, Maya Gasior and Rhyley Henstock all secured grade 9s as part of their impressive results.
Taylor Sullivan achieved an outstanding combination of grades 8 and 7 across all his subjects. Harry Reeves, Katie Clay, Vinny Lower, Klaudia Bagniewska and Joel Smith also achieved excellent results that included grade 8s.
The school is equally proud of April Reed and Zac Twigger, who secured fantastic results while overcoming significant personal adversity. Their resilience, determination and commitment are a credit to them both.
Aldercar’s culture of Every child known, every lesson counts, every future unlocked remains at the heart of the school’s work. While examination results are only one measure of success, the school is delighted that the vast majority of the year group secured their preferred next step.
The Aldercar community wishes every young person the very best as they progress to further education, apprenticeships, employment and beyond.
One Embark community, thousands of reasons to be proud
Across our four secondary schools, the Class of 2026 has demonstrated ambition, perseverance and remarkable strength of character.
These achievements belong first and foremost to our young people, but they have also been made possible by those who stood beside them. We thank our dedicated teachers and support staff for their expertise and encouragement, and our families and carers for the vital role they have played.
Whatever their results and whatever path they now choose, we hope every young person recognises how much they have achieved and looks to the future with confidence.
Congratulations to the Class of 2026 from everyone across Embark. We are incredibly proud of you, and we cannot wait to see where your journey takes you next.