'Your results don't define you' - Cumbria GCSE students find out their exam results

• ITV Border's reporter Barnaby Papadopulos finds out how students performed in their exam results.

Headteacher tells GCSE students "your results don't define you" as pupils across Cumbria find out their exam results.

After many months of hard work and preparation, the wait is over for students to find out their next steps beyond year 11.

Students can chose from a variety of options going forward, they include A-Levels, apprenticeships and technical qualifications.

Kath Pigdon, the headteacher at William Howard school in Brampton, says teachers are still there to support who want it.

She said: "Your results don't define you. Our job doesn't finish either here, when students are disappointed or they didn't get what they needed, we still continue to support them to get them onto that right pathway.

"Students will mature sometimes at different rates and the progress they make does not have to be at the same speed and same direction."

Ms Pigdon says it has been a good year for the school.

She said: "Very pleased, very proud of them all. The school's done better in terms of improvements in results that we've seen this year.

"It's a good foundation now to built further as we go into the next academic year.

"I think when you work in education you realise not one year is the same as the next. We're used to change, we're used adapting to the situation that we find."

GCSE exams begin in May and continue for more than a month, ending in June. Students then have a summer break before heading off onto their next step after results day.

Harrison Reynolds, a student at William Howard, says his final results had been on his mind throughout the summer.

He said: "It's definitely in recent weeks played on my mind a lot more than it had throughout. I'm very happy with my results, it's a big weight off my shoulders.

"I'm on a level 3 plumbing apprenticeship at Carlisle College, so I'll be working four days a week, then at college once. I've done that because I did my work experience with them through William Howard and I've been back with them. I know it's what I want to do."

Harry Graham-Bell, a student, says his will results will help him follow his dream of being a physiotherapist.

He said: "It's a massive weight off my mind, I've been stressed about it for quite a while now and it's been on my mind quite a bit.

"I'm happy with my results, I'm able to go to sixth form and do what I want to do at sixth form."

Grace Little, a student, wants to go off to university to begin an agricultural course despite the student debt.

She said: "I know it's going to be a lot of money, but I'm quite happy to just go and enjoy that sort of lifestyle as well. I want to do that course, it's got what I want out of it. So I think I'll just have to take it in my stride.

"I'm really happy with my results, I've been stressing for like a week. The last couple days I've been like it's printed now, it's going to be what it's going to be and as long as it's gets me to where I need to be then that's absolutely fine and it's done that."

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