SCHOOLS across South Durham have reported an increase in the GCSE pass rate, with some achieving record grades.

The outstanding pupil at Woodham Community Technology College in Newton Aycliffe was Carly Price, who achieved ten grades at A* to C.

Carly and Alice Gleave were in the top five pupils in the country for GCSE history, out of almost 24,000 entrants.

Julie Wallace from Teesdale School, in Barnard Castle, gained one of the top five marks in the country for technology from more than 70,000 candidates. Overall, the school had its best ever year, with top grades up to 58.7 per cent.

The top pupil at King James I Community College, in Bishop Auckland, was Kathryn Charlton, who achieved 14 passes at grade A* to C.

The school had 37 per cent A* to C grades overall, up seven per cent on last year and ahead of its LEA target, and 95 per cent A* to G passes.

Staindrop Comprehensive School has enjoyed a record year, with 58 per cent of pupils achieving five or more A* to C grades, compared to 45 per cent last year.

Headteacher Brian Kinnair said: "We are proud of the fact that all the children have left with some examination certificate for the third year running."

Sedgefield Community College recorded its best ever results, with all but one pupil achieving at least one GCSE pass.

Of those, 90 per cent achieved at least five passes. The best subject was IT, with every candidate gaining at least a C grade.

At Sunnydale School, in Shildon, almost a third of the year group achieved the benchmark five passes or better at grades A* to C, matching its best ever performance.

There were many individual successes, with 15 students achieving a 100 per cent pass rate at A* to C.

Five students managed ten higher grade passes from ten, another eight achieved nine from nine, while two more got eight from eight.

Wolsingham School and Community College maintained the percentage of its students attaining five or more passes at A* to C and the overall pass rate at A* to C improved by 3.5 per cent.

The percentage of students gaining five or more passes at A* to G improved significantly, as did the percentage of students gaining at least one GCSE pass.