STUDENTS at Uxbridge College had extra reason to be proud of their achievements as their GCSE courses are completed in only one full term instead of two years.

Dr Darrell DeSouza, Vice Principal for Standards and Curriculum at Uxbridge College, based in Park Road, Uxbridge, said: "This year's GCSE results are one more thing to celebrate about in an excellent year for Uxbridge College.

"Some of the greatest achievements are by people who may not have done as well as they wanted to at school, or have had to work on their English language skills, but have blossomed in the college environment.

Students at Uxbridge College study for the exams in just eight to nine months, compared to the two years taken by school pupils, and as a result usually only sit five instead of 10.

The Overall pass rate at grades A*-C was 57 per cent and 91 per cent of students sitting Information and Communication Technology (ICT) achieved grade A*-C while there was a 100 per cent pass rate in foreign languages including Arabic, Dutch and Urdu.

Malik Burhan-ul-Hassan, 17, of Pinglestone Close, Harmondsworth, got A* in Chemistry and Physics, and As in Urdu, English, Maths and Biology.

He said: "I am really, really happy and excited about the future. I am now going to take four A levels at Uxbridge College in Maths and Sciences."

Ilona Swiatowska, 17, of Slough, achieved five top grades including an A in English, despite the fact she had arrived from Poland the previous year and virtually had to learn English from scratch.

Before starting her GCSEs she completed an English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Level 1 at the College. After opening her results before leaving for the Reading Festival, she said: "There are no words to describe how I am feeling. I cannot believe how well I have done."