City school among the country's elite.(News)

Byline: Shahid Naqvi

Birmingham's King Edward VI High School for Girls has been named among the country's elite top five for GCSE results.

The school in Edgbaston saw a 100 per cent pass rate among the 148 16 year-olds who took the exams this year.

The result means it was bettered in the private schools'GCSE table only by St Paul's School in London in first place, Cambridge's Perse School for Girls in second and Eton in third. Nearly 60 per cent of entries at King Edward VI were awarded the top grade A*; 86.6 per cent were at least an A grade and 97.9 were a C or higher.

King Edward VI head teacher Sarah Evans said: 'We are delighted. What we are particularly pleased about is that we got ten of the best five marks in a subject nationally.'

The girls' school came ahead of King Edward's School - its neighbouring boys' school counterpart - which although coming second in the region and also claiming a 100 per cent pass rate, was in 32nd place nationally.

The proportion obtaining the top grade A* at King Edward's was 41.2 per cent, with 78.1 per cent gaining at least an A grade and 98.7 per cent at least a C.

In third place for GCSEs in the Midlands was Bablake School, followed by Wolverhampton Grammar School.

But the country's topperforming private school for GCSEs took the opportunity to attack the emphasis on coursework in the curriculum, describing it as an 'idea that hadn't worked'.

Dr Martin Stephen, high master of St Paul's in south-west London, said: 'The internet is a gift to plagiarism. I fully support the move to abolish coursework - it's a Government idea that hasn't worked.'

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