A-levels: Record number going to university despite fall in top grades

Hundreds of thousands of teenagers received their A-level results today - but among them was a slightly older student - a headteacher who decided to resit his exams decades after first taking them.

Michael Jackson from Nottingham felt he should have done better at the exams when he was younger, having got two E grades, so this year he joined his students in studying, revising and entering the exam hall in an effort to improve his grades - which he did.

Hundreds of thousands of students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are receiving their A-level results today.

Record numbers of students are heading to university this year, with more than 400,000 already accepted on to degree courses.

As of midnight, 409,410 people had been accepted on to higher education courses in the UK, up 3% - around an extra 13,000 students - compared to the same point last year.

This is the highest number of acceptances recorded on A-level results day, admissions service Ucas said.

Students who didn't get the results they wanted when they opened their A-levels today have been told not to worry and to consider their next move carefully.

Annie Dobson, from Ucas, advised students to contact their chosen universities as they may have accepted them anyway even if they have not got the exact grades.

Universities could offer a record number of places after the Government lifted the cap on the amount of students that institutions in England can accept.