Year 11 - 2024/2025: The Results Day Thread

[QueenMabby]

New thread for results day. Deep breaths. We can do this!

Thank you for the thread @QueenMabby. Nerves are starting somewhat! I should be used to this as she’s Number 4, but I’m not. Spent this morning shopping and packing for Reading Festival which has kept her busy. I think she just wants tomorrow morning over and then get on the train with her mates for 4 days of no sleep and (imo) crap music. She’s got training this evening, so should hopefully sleep really well tonight at least. Ho hum, 19 hours to go and the wait is over.

I’m mine Hods too for their subject.

Can I ask what your schools have said about the day itself?

Neither me nor DC have had any communication from school about timings. I have tried calling and emailing. I have no idea what time they are open.

Their communication is rubbish generally. It’s a well regarded school locally but honestly I would not recommend them to anyone.

Hello @MrsHamlet and teacher parents - can anyone advise?

DD is in an absolute state and refusing to collect marks in person tommorrow. Is there any way a school would give an indication in advance first thing tomorrow if the marks are ok enough to get into desired sixth form so I could convince her to go in person? She’s desperate to see her friends at school but just can’t face opening them. The school have given permission for an adult to collect them in her place so it’s not a matter of getting them - it’s getting an indication if they’re ok so as to encourage DD to go in and get them herself.

not sure if this is making sense it’s a pretty awful atmosphere in our house at the moment!

Checking in ready for tomorrow. By this time tomorrow we'll know.

I'm not particularly stressed - we are expecting a mix of 6s 5s & 4s and DC only needs five 4s for next year's plans so there should be nothing ro worry about, but just now I allowed myself to imagine what it might be like if there was one or two 7s (not likely, but possible) and that thought made me start to weep with joy. So maybe. Equally it could go the other way but it doesn't seem likely that it would be disastrously worse than expected. Either way it won't change any plans. I'm really not sure it's healthy for our young people to not know until this late in August where/what they wil be studying when term starts in only 2 weeks' time. It's even worse after A-Levels when the decision might have dramatic effects on where the young person will be living. The system really needs a shakeup.

@Trixibell1234 for us school opens at 8.30am for in person collection unless other arrangements made (see my post above! I’ll be hanging at the school gates with the 16 yo’s 😧)

Can you take her in and have her wait in car/outside while you get the envelope and then open them together privately? That's what I'll be doing with DD. Then, if all's okay, she's planning go back inside to see her friends and teachers and I'll go home.

Could an adult collect them, bring them to your car and if shes happy, she can go in?

@Bananafofana I'd contact school today - head of year and exams officer - to ask. I've opened envelopes for students before, with their consent.

I agree @GameWheelsAlarm – it does feel ridiculously close to the wire for them to receive their results. Good luck for yours tomorrow. I've been so prepared for DD getting 4s and 5s that it hasn't occurred to me she might do better in some subjects. Will be lovely and amazing if she does!

Thanks for the supportive suggestions everyone. I’ve suggested going in the car - (and parking in a remote side street!) - but DD has very severe anxiety about this, seeing therapist, and is adamant that not getting in car. Won’t make any plans for tomorrow night, won’t agree to go out for dinner with us, turned down ticket to Reading Festival etc. Thank you for the suggestion @MrsHamlet i will try that now. We had the horror of exams and then 6 weeks of result anxiety. I’m broken 😞

Hi, joining as well - I commented a bit on previous thread during the exams but have been trying to distract from thoughts of it since then!
I'm another not quite sure what to expect - dc have had grades ranging from 3 (English) to 9 (sciences) in past exams, she is dyslexic, however with much tutoring managed 6 and 7 in the last lot of English mocks. Still feel English is a big of a wild card though and hoping there is no repeat of the crazy marking that seemed to occur last year...
She is also still struggling to decide between 2 sixth form options (assuming she gets the required grades!)

Results have marks but someone (me in this case) has to check grade boundaries. DS was one off what he needed to do the subject at Sixth Form, so I contacted school and arranged a remark. They paid as they could see a potential rise but he didn't go up, so was not allowed to do it!
(Still sore about that as the department head agreed to take him as he was well below his predicted grade but the head of sixth form refused)

Thanks, just had an email. Still think they could have let us know earlier! We’re taking nothing for granted here, am very stressed quietly. Glad to be at work today tbh, booked tomorrow off though

My mum passed in May, right in the middle of the exams. She’d been ill for ages and it was a very hard few years for her and me and by extension my children, her only grandchildren. My eldest turned 18 last week, just before results day, and her card was missing, I had a bit of a lump about that. She’d have been so proud of his results and I expect the same would have been the case with tomorrow’s GCSEs. She had so few opportunities to study (she was born in 1930) and those that were there were taken away by world events so this was so important to her (and my dad who died 25 years ago).

Good luck to all for tomorrow. I hope all our youngsters get what they need for their next steps.

@Bananafofana she doesn't have to open them at all. Or even collect them. Some of ours won't - for a variety of reasons.

I am absolutely dreading tomorrow. The last 18 months leading up to the exams have been so stressful for us and DS.

He is just not academic at all and has really struggled in most of his subjects except for in two of his practical subjects which he has excelled in (well hopefully!)

If he gets 4s in the key subjects I will be over the moon and he has had extra tutoring but its all in the lap of the gods now. Just want to know!!

I'm so sorry. My DD has anxiety and as a a parent it's soul-destroying watching them struggle and feeling powerless to help them. I really hope your DD gets the grades she needs and that afterwards she'll feel more like celebrating. My DD's friends are all going to Reading and she didn't want to either.

Joining - I am more wound up that my DD is - they are cool as a cucumber 😂😂😂

They should get great results but maths is the worrying one. Grade 9 student consistently until the actual exam. She reckons she has got a 7. This would be an amazing grade still but she wants to do further maths at A-level and looking to study engineering at university.

Thankfully she’s decided to stay on for sixth form at her school and the head of maths has agreed she can still do FM whatever her grade is (because they know her abilities and it would be a total anomaly for her to get lower than an 8).

She’s just anxious as the other places she looked at for sixth form stipulated a 9 at GCSE was a firm requirement for A-level further maths.

Checking in...

Hello, I've been reading GCSE posts but haven't commented before. Absolutely dreading tomorrow as DS is set on 6th form college and specific A levels not widely offered but unlikely to get the 2 x 6s needed. He generally has a mix of 3, 4 and 5s. No backup as he refused to consider anything else. He's very anxious so tomorrow may not be pleasant. Good luck to everyone, it's hard to remember that low grades aren't the end of the world when there's so much riding on it. I also think that results are received far, far too late.

It's really hard when dc are so set on a certain path and refuse to consider a plan b.
My dd was the same :(
A disastrous 6th form taster day has meant a rethink.
In my dds case, I think it was fear of the new/unknown so a 6th form at a similar school seemed "safe".
The good news is, even with <4s there are options.
Good luck x

I agree that they are given too close to September but this is why it’s important to have other options lined up.

There's still time today for you to look at other options, like BTechs and T Levels. He might not want to hear it straight away if he doesn't get the grades he wants, but at least you'll have the info to hand when he is ready.

Jumping on the bus…
My DD doesn’t seem too worried, she’s chosen one btec alongside 2-3 Alevels and so thinks she’ll get what she needs.
Her results could be all over the place though, if her mocks are anything to go by.

And we’re all praying she’s going to pass Maths!