Students embraced and shrieked with delight after tearing open their envelopes on Thursday (August 25) morning, as the nervous wait for their GCSE results finally came to an end.

Their joy was matched by the delight of staff, whose hard work was rewarded by seeing the jubilation on their pupils' faces.

Many schools this year chose to highlight their Progress 8 score - a new indicator introduced to show how much progress students have made.

According to the measure, average results at some schools were nearly a grade higher than expected based on students' attainment when they joined from primary school.

The Heathland School, Hounslow

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At The Heathland School in Hounslow, a third (33%) of all GCSE grades awarded were A*s or As.

The school had 24 pupils with at least 10 As or better, and 14 with straight As or A*s.

Deputy headteacher Michael Rose said: "We're delighted with the results. We had lots of students achieving the top grades and there was excellent progress made across the year group."

The students with 10 or more A* or A grades were: Nishi Acharya, Alvina Ahmed, Amrit Dhami, Nyla Drisdale-Gordon, Naincy Gajera, Mohammad Hakimi, Isabel Harvey, Janithaa Jeyakumar, Fatima Khan, Minhaj Mahim, Mahnoor Mustafa, Sasha Phull, Naveena Pranavarooban, Hannah Raja, Malaika Riaz, Kajal Sandhu, Sharaz Shahzad, Rohan Sood, Prashasti Tiwari, Kristen Treeby, Sarmpavi Uthayakumar, Ashley Vijayakumar, Rovena Walichchoru Evayage and Flora Waller.

Gursimranjit Dhillon (right) planned to use her GCSE results as a bargaining chip to persuade her parents to buy her a dog

For many students, the results came with the added bonus of a reward from their parents - from money to a slap-up meal or even a new pet.​

Gursimranjit Dhillon, who bagged four A*s and five As, said: "I'm going to go home and nag my parents to give me something as a reward.

"I really want a dog​, so these results might help me persuade them to get me one, but the main thing is that I'm not going to get kicked out of the house for failing!"

Alexander Apetroaie was offered £10 by his parents per A or A* grade, and it proved a costly decision as he bagged seven of the top grades. "That's £70. Not bad," he said.

Kaveen Sandhu didn't have to wait for her results to get a reward, with her parents buying her a rag doll cat, which she has named Captain, earlier in the week.

"I got Captain the other day as an early reward, but we'll probably celebrate with a family dinner tonight," she said.

Nando's, meanwhile, was the place to be when it came to celebrating with friends. Many students said they were heading to the restaurant to toast their success with lashings of PERi-PERi sauce.

Brentford School for Girls

Some of the star GCSE students at Brenftord School for Girls

Brentford School for Girls said it was "very proud" of its students' achievements at GCSE, especially as it said national results suggested the exams were getting harder.

It reserved a special mention for the following students, who between them amassed a glut of A* and A grades: Chloe Hooper, Michelle Yang, Sophia Luouis, Hadjar Maache, Zoe O Logbon.

In a statement the school said: "We are delighted with another set of very strong GCSE results and are very proud of our students' achievements as the GCSE examinations become more challenging nationally.

"Congratulations to all of the students in year 11 at Brentford School for Girls, we are looking forward to welcoming them all back into our thriving sixth form in September."

Chiswick School

Chiswick School students Georgia Barratt and Elisa Rose Inoue Halkes, who excelled in their GCSEs

Chiswick School said its GCSE results had improved by nearly 5% overall - bucking the national decline in grades.

It said two thirds (66%) of students had gained A*-C grades in both maths and English.

And it also scored above average on the new Progress 8 measure, which tracks the improvement made by pupils since starting secondary school - scoring +0.12.

Headteacher Tony Ryan said: "This cohort of students are a close-knit bunch who have looked after each other and truly deserve the success that they have achieved today. They have worked closely with staff to achieve their very best."

The school's star pupils included: Emily Cobb (11 A*s, 2 As and 1C),

Francesco Compagnoni (10 A*s, 1 A and 1B), Lucy Rowden (5 A*s, 4 As and 2Bs), Yasir Abdi (5A*s, 2As, 1B and 1C), Georgia Barratt (4 A*s, 6 As and 1C), Chris Stevens (4 A*s and 6 As), Analucia Tomasso (4 A*s and 6 As), Nikolas Aguilar (4 A*s, 5As, 1B and 1C), Aakangsha Lund (4 A*s, 4 As, 2 Bs and 1C), Shukry Adbi (4 A*s, 3 As, 2 Bs and 2CS), Sanela Kajevic (2 A*s, 7 As, 1 B and 1C) and Donya Shirazi-Rhys (2 A*s, 7 As and 5Bs).

Cranford Community College

Star GCSE pupils at Cranford Community College: Ehsan Gupta, Anjitha Anilkumar and Baljinder Padda

At Cranford Community College , executive headteacher Kevin Prunty declared himself "jubilant" at the results.

He was especially thrilled with the science grades, following a glut of A*s and As.

He said the school was laying on extra support for those hoping to pursue a career in medicine, which would include field trips to India where students will get the chance to work in a hospital while studying for their A Levels.

Mr Prunty said: "We are particularly jubilant because the headline figures are such a huge leap upwards."

The school's star students included: Anjitha Anilkumar (12 A*s), Baljinder Padda (8 A*s, 4 As), Mohamed Gulaid (7 A*s, 5 As), Lucy Tirahan (6 A*s, 4 As, B), Warsam Hashi (6 A*s, 3 As, 4 Bs), Hamza Mohamed (5 A*s, 7 As), Ehsan Gupta (5 A*s, 6 As), Shivam Vegad (4 A*s, 7 As), Suman Kumar (4 A*s, 6 As), Ritek Kapoor (3 A*s, 7 As), Ramash Arib (1 A*, 11 As), Al-Enzeli Ramji (10 As), Charnice Gill (10 As)

Feltham Community College

These students at Feltham Community College were all smiles after opening their GCSE results

Feltham Community College declared itself "truly delighted" with its students' GCSE results.

The school scored +0.27 in the new Progress 8 measure, which tracks the improvement made by pupils since joining from primary school.

It said students had excelled in the core subjects, with 76% securing a C or better in English, and 64% doing so in maths.

Star students at the school included: Ben Logsdon (3A*s, 4As, 1B), Alfie Webb (1A*, 3As, 3Bs), Liam Humphreys (5As, 3Bs), Sam Baigent (4As, 4Bs), Mehreen Ellahi (4As, 3Bs, 1C) Abbee Farmer (3As, 5Bs) and Florence Lawless-Hearn (1A*, 2As, 4Bs, 1C).

The Green School, Isleworth

At The Green School in Isleworth, a third (33%) of grades were As or A*s.

Headteacher Sally Yarrow said: "Following our successful A level results last week, we are delighted to report an excellent set of GCSE results.

"The results reflected many personal success stories and we are very proud of our students' achievements.

"We would like to congratulate all our students for their hard work and commitment to their studies as well as thanking our teaching and support staff for their dedication."

Gumley House Convent School, Isleworth

Star pupils at Gumley House Convent School: Evie Bedford (inset) with Eleanor Adler, Chantel Anumihe, Alis Sejourne and Anna Keefe

At Gumley House Convent School , in Isleworth, 81% of students achieved five or more A* to C grade GCSEs including English and maths.

Two fifths (40%) of all grades awarded to pupils at the school were As or A*s.

Evie Bedford made a major contribution to that total, achieving 12 A*s.

She was one of 27 students there to gain at least 10 A* or A grades.

Headteacher Ewa Kolczynska said: "I am very proud of our students' outstanding achievement which is evidence of their hard work and determined spirit supported by the high quality teaching at our school."

Gunnersbury Catholic School, Brentford

At Gunnersbury Catholic School in Brentford, 89% of students gained five or more A*-C grade GCSEs including English and maths.

More than two fifths (41%) of all grades awarded to pupils there were As or A*s, and over two thirds (67%) of students achieved the English Baccalaureate, which requires good grades in a range of core subjects.

Under the new Progress 8 measure, which tracks children's progress since leaving primary school, the school scored +0.96 - that means students achieved on average nearly a grade higher than expected given their starting point.

Headteacher Kevin Burke said: "I am filled with pride at the achievement of our boys. These GCSE results have once again placed Gunnersbury Catholic School amongst the leading schools in the country."

Heston Community School

Heston Community School pupils Indhi, Habon Handule and Nina Fordred with their GCSE results

Heston Community School said 64% of pupils had gained five or more A*-C grade GCSEs including English and maths.

Acting headteacher Ranjit Berdesha said: "I am very proud of our students and teachers who have worked hard to achieve the successes they have. I'm also very grateful for the support we all receive from our parents.

"I look forward to welcoming back many of these very able students and look forward to seeing them develop and achieve further success in our sixth form."

Star pupils included: Sanisha Malhi - 7A* & 3A grades; Kamalpreet Sadhra - 6A* & 3A grades; Navjot Kahlon - 6A* & 4A grades; Nina Fordred - 6A* & 4A grades; Mansi Bhalsod - 6A* & 4A grades; Sapna Naik - 6A* & 4A grades; Amar Nagi - 5A* & 4A grades; Habon Handule - 4A* & 5A grades; Janeesh Bansal - 4A* & 5A grades; Emily Arulappu - 4A* & 5A grades; Rahin Shudar - 4A* & 5A grades

Isleworth & Syon School

Isleworth & Syon School pupils Manahar Kumar, Gheorghe Rotaru, Robbie Whitmore and Rowan Thwaites

Girls traditionally outperform boys when it comes to GCSE grades.

But at the all-boys Isleworth & Syon School , students easily surpassed the national average for their sex.

Mo Farah's old school saw 100% of students achieve five or more A*-G grades, which it said was well above the national average for boys of 89%.

A fifth (20%) of all GCSE grades at the school were A*s or As, which the school said was also comfortably above the national figure of 16% for boys.

The school scored 0.32 in the new Progress 8 measure, which it said meant results were on average a third of a grade better than expected based on pupils' attainment when they first joined the school.

Headteacher Euan Ferguson said: "While the national outlook continues to be unpredictable, we are thrilled that our boys have continued to excel.

It is equally important to know that our boys continue to out-perform boys nationally and in mixed settings."

The school's roll of honour included: Robbie Whitmore (9 A*s, 2 As and a B), Omar Mahfoudi (7 A*s, 2 As and 2 Bs), Gheorghe Rotaru (5 A*s, 5 As and a B), Manahar Kumar (3 A*s and 8 As) and Hasseeb Hussain (4 A*s, 5 As and 2 Bs).

Kingsley Academy, Hounslow

Kingsley Academy in Hounslow provided balloons to celebrate the GCSE results of its high-flying students

Kingsley Academy in Hounslow said it was "delighted" with its students' GCSE results.

The school said it had achieved a "very positive" score in the government's new Progress 8 indicator, which showed its pupils had improved more than expected in core subjects including maths and English.

Principal Lesley Kirby said: "These results build on the hard work undertaken by the academy community last year, where students’ involvement in a wide range of exciting activities enriched their learning experiences.

"Among these we include STEM projects, TalentEd - a national gifted and talented project - and prestigious university summer schools placements awarded to some of our ambitious Year 12s."

The school gave a special mention to the following pupils: Amarpreet SB, Shyana G and Hamsa Z, who each achieved 10 A*s or As; and Moataz A, Tharini V and Kimrinjeet M, who each earned 9 A*s or As.

Staff also praised the following students, whose personal progress it said had vastly exceeded government expectations: Ola A, Rajat P, Yuliya B and Taleb H.

* the school did not give full surnames for these students

Lampton School, Hounslow

Students embrace as they celebrate their GCSE results at Lampton School in Hounslow

Lampton School in Hounslow said it was "delighted" with its GCSE results, after 69% of pupils achieved five or more A*-C grades including maths and English.

More than three quarters (77%) of students at the school bagged five or more A*-C grades in any subject, and 38% achieved the English Baccalaureate.

The school said early indications suggested that in the new 'Progress 8' measure, which measures the improvement made by pupils, its students had achieved more than two-thirds of a grade higher than expected.

Headteacher Stephen Davis said: "We are delighted with the results achieved by our pupils today. To be able to celebrate such strong results for both attainment and progress is a real joy.

"The pupils worked exceptionally hard, supported by their families and fantastic teachers. We are proud that all pupils are able to make exceptional progress at Lampton School.”

The school gave a special mention to the following students, who all achieved straight A* or A grades: Zahrah Beg, Suraj Sharma, Ashwarya Rathod, Harmeet Singh, Aashna Malik, Samartha Gupta, Meenal Warrier, Zak Williams.

Staff also praised the following pupils, who they said had made "exceptional progress": Halimo Jama, Alizah Khan, Aashan Malik, Daniaal Mahmood, Eliza Yasmin, Tia Patel and Minaar Miyanji.

Rivers Academy, Feltham

At Rivers Academy , in Feltham, acting principal Andria Singlehurst was "over the moon" about her pupils' "tremendous results".

Nearly two thirds (62%) of pupils at the school bagged five or more A*-C grade GCSEs including English and maths, and 28% achieved the English Baccalaureate, which also includes history or geography, the sciences and a language.

Ms Singlehurst said: "We are over the moon for our Year 11 students who have worked so hard with staff to achieve these tremendous results.

"Such phenomenal results, at GCSE and at A Level, are thanks to the incredibly committed support of all Rivers Academy’s talented teaching and support staff."

St Mark's Catholic School, Hounslow

St Mark's Catholic School in Hounslow said this year's crop of year 11 students had "improved on the school's high standards at GCSE".

It said 152 students gained five or more A*-C grades including English and maths - the eighth year in a row the school has been above 80% for this figure - which it said placed it among the best schools in the country.

"These results are a great tribute to the hard work of both the pupils and staff as well as their families," the school said in a statement.

Top achievers included: Klaudia Zaporowska (11 A*s); Louise Weiner (10 A*s); Tom Stitson and Keira Moore, who both achieved 9 A* grades; and Samantha Bowman, who achieved 8 A* grades.

There were 28 pupils who achieved at least nine A* or A grades.