Redland and Cotham Schools Top League Tables (Sort of)

Redland High School for Girls has come top of the GCSE league table for Bristol, published this month in the Times newspaper.

The independent girls' school saw 97% of its pupils achieve five or more A* - C at last summer's GCSE exams. In addition, 95% of the girls achieved two science GCSEs with an A* - C.

The school, located on Redland Road, achieved the highest results at GCSE for any school in the Bristol area, slightly ahead of Clifton High School and Colston's School in Stapleton, both independents.

Colston's Girls' School, the state-funded academy on Cheltenham Road, was the city's top performing state school at GCSE level, with 85% of its pupils achieving five or more A* - C.  Cotham School achieved 69% of passes and 83% at double science, behind St Mary Redcliffe and Temple school in the city centre. 20 of the students at Redland High achieved all As or A*s last year.

The apparent success of Redland High, however, comes with a caveat. The figures on the league table exclude schools that offer the International GCSE exam for maths. The IGCSE has become increasingly popular with some independent schools in recent years. Locally, Badminton School, Bristol Grammar, Clifton College and QEH all enter their students into the IGCSE maths exam and are thus excluded from the league table.

Caroline Bateson, Headmistress at Redland High, said of the results, "This is a very strong performance and we are delighted that the vast majority of our girls now have a very solid foundation on which to build A Level results that will enable them to go to one of this country's top universities.” The school, which provides education for girls from age 3 to 18, also achieved a 100% pass rate for last year's A Level exams.

Senior school fees at Redland High School are currently £3,050 per year.