Larne Grammar School celebrates ‘outstanding’ year

Head Girl and Head Boy, Jenna McCarlie and Matthew Clenaghan with guest of honour Simon McDowell and principal, Jonathan Wylie.

Larne Grammar prize night guests heard the school had some of the top performing candidates in Northern Ireland in the 2019 exam series.

Mr Wylie added: “With 83.3% of pupils achieving 3 A*-C grades, Larne Grammar School pupils will have achieved well above the Northern Ireland grammar school average for the fourth year in succession. The percentage of pupils achieving 3 A*-B grades (51.1%) was also the best ever achieved by the school.

“The AS results were very strong at every measure. Over half of the cohort achieved at least 3 A or B grades and which bodes well for another excellent set of ‘A’ Level results in 2020. At GCSE best ever outcomes were achieved in relation to the percentage of entries awarded A*-A (52.7%) and A*-C (96.4%).”

While celebrating the outstanding results, Mr Wylie acknowledged that academic success is only one aspect of life at the school.

Clarinet Ensemble of Cara McIlroy, Grace Logan, Jamie Clements and Rory Madden entertain guests during the Musical Interlude.

He noted the vital role that extensive extra-curricular provision delivers in developing “the social and emotional growth of our young people, the emergence of interpersonal and other skills and dispositions which are so important in preparing pupils for the world of work, as well as helping to encourage healthy lifestyles and the development of interests and knowledge.

He went on to review the wide-ranging list of achievements of pupils in the extra-curricular fields of sport, music, drama, entrepreneurship, innovation, literacy, numeracy and travel.

Mr Wylie praised colleagues “whose commitment, skill, dedication and enthusiasm facilitate those achievements and make them possible”.

He paid particular tribute to three retiring teachers, Mrs Headden, Mr Thomson and Miss Hunter who have a combined 86-years of service.

Recipients of the Principals Prize, Thea Bareham, Luke Clarke, Karen Currie, Holly Drummond, Sophie Farquhar, Iain Gingles, Jamie Maybin, Chloe McKay, Lauren McKenna, Abbie McWhirter and Keryn Wilson.