Sixth Form students celebrate success across The Mercian Trust schools

Over 600 students at seven of the twelve schools in The Mercian Trust are collecting their A Level and Level 3 Vocational and Technical Qualifications this morning.

At the heart of our Trust is our social mobility mission to increase opportunities and improve outcomes for all students in the communities we serve across Sandwell and Walsall. We are delighted that our ambitions are being realised, with strong outcomes for students that received SEND support and those who have faced disadvantage including students who were in receipt of Free School Meals.

With these strong results, our students have been able to secure fantastic apprenticeship, university and employment places and can look forward to starting the next stage of their learning and career journeys in September.

Dan Parkes, CEO of The Mercian Trust, said:

Today is a day to celebrate the achievements, resilience and ambition of hundreds of young people across our trust. Whether students have secured places at university, degree apprenticeships, employment or further training, they should be immensely proud of everything they have accomplished.

I am especially delighted that so many students have achieved outstanding outcomes in technical, vocational and applied qualifications alongside excellent A Level results. Across our schools, hundreds of students have gained high grades in priorities areas such as health, computing, business, and creative arts, demonstrating the breadth of talent that exists across our communities.

These achievements matter not only to our individual students and their families, but also to the future prosperity of our region. They align closely with the priorities of both the Prime Minister and our West Midlands Mayor to create more opportunity, strengthen skills, support economic growth and ensure that young people can thrive in life and work.

 As a trust, we believe success should be measured not simply by examination grades, but by the opportunities those grades unlock. Seeing our students progress to leading universities, higher apprenticeships, professional careers and technical pathways is a powerful reminder of the life-changing impact education can have.

On behalf of everyone across our trust, I offer my warmest congratulations to every student receiving results today. We are incredibly proud of you, grateful to the staff and families who have supported you, and excited to see the difference you will make in the years ahead. We wish you every success for the future.