Students celebrate success

North Halifax Grammar School prize winning pupils Maisie McManus, James Mitchell, Georgina Robinson and Alex Benn with Andrew Fisher school principal, Deputy Mayor and Mayoress of Calderdale Coun Ferman Ali and Mrs Shaheen Ali, Richard Stenson spesker and chairman of the Governors Kevin Floyd.

Hundreds of awards were presented to students in recognition of their work throughout the year.

During a speech to guests, Andrew Fisher, head teacher at the Illingworth school, congratulated pupils on another “phenomenal” year for GCSE and A Level results.

He said: “Every single one of the young people who comes up on stage will deserve every clap you give them.

“Being a teenager seems to me to be getting harder and harder every year and these youngsters have not just survived the teenage jungle, they have thrived in it, so well done them.

“Last year was another phenomenal year in terms of the results achieved by thestudents with both the GCSE and A Level results very close to our best ever performances at a time when budgetary pressures and the demands of externally imposed change have never been more acute.

“I would like to put on record my absolute and unequivocal thanks to all of my colleagues in school who work so very hard on behalf of our students.

“They show quite tremendous levels of resilience which can only come from their deep sense of moral purpose about the importance of educating the upcoming generations to the very best of our ability.

“The need for such excellence in education seems to be one point of certainty in an increasingly uncertain world.”

Mr Fisher also took the opportunity to touch on the refurbishment work currently transforming the school.

“We are part way through a £2m refurbishment programme that I think we can all agree was well overdue.

“In a few weeks time I hope we will hear that we have secured further funding to complete the renewal of roofs and windows throughout the entire site and, in my wildest dreams, I dare to hope we might secure the funding we need to build a very much needed Sports Hall.

“One of my ambitions as principal is to ensure that the building and facilities come to reflect the excellence of the staff and students working in and with them.”

Former pupil Richard Stenson, owner of the Old Gate, Hebden Bridge, was guest speaker on the day.