GCSE results: How did we do?

Identical twins Jennifer and Rachel Thompson took the same subjects, got the same grades, and even the same mark in one exam.

Katie Oakes reports:

It's been a big day for our secondary schools pupils opened their GCSE results.

For the second year in a row, the number of pupils gaining the top grades went down in the North East.

Dan Ashby reports.

If your results weren't all you were hoping for don't despair.

Many people have been in exactly the same position and have gone on to make a success of their lives.

Rik Stone left school aged 15 with no qualifications, but he overcame this to become a published author.

Rik grew up in North Shields on North Tyneside and went to work at Clelands shipyard before joining the merchant navy.

He thinks it's never too late to learn.

For students who may have received some unexpected results, the national exam results helpline will be open until noon on Saturday (24th August).

Parents and students can talk to experienced, impartial and friendly careers advisers who will talk through what options are available, including higher education, taking a gap year and finding employment.

David Murdoch, a student who called the helpline, said:

“It was really great to have someone properly explain my options - what I could do, alternatives I hadn’t thought about, and the processes I needed to go through. Best of all, I got objective advice.”

The Exam Results Helpline can be reached on 0808 100 8000. Calls are free from landlines. Mobile network charges vary.

For further information including opening hours, click here.

The North East has suffered one of the biggest falls in the country in this year's GCSE results.

A* to C grades have dropped by 2.1%.

Changes to the way the exams have been marked are being blamed.

Jennifer and Rachel Thomson took the same subjects, got the same grades, and even the same mark in Geography.

GCSE grades have fallen for a second consecutive year, with a drop in the proportion of entries scoring at least a C in English, maths and science.

• In English, 63.6% of entries gained a C or higher, down from 64.1% last summer.

• In maths, 57.6% of entries scored an A*-C grade, compared to 58.4% in 2012.

• In Science, there has been a 7.6% fall in the proportion of entries awarded a C grade or higher.

The drop in English comes amid a rise in the number of younger students taking the GCSE exams, the Joint Council for Qualifications said.

The fall in Science follows a move by Ofqual to toughen up the qualifications after a 2009 report by the regulator found that the courses were too easy.