A TENSE morning for Lincolnshire's GCSE students has resulted in the best grades the county has ever seen.

Provisional figures show that 59 per cent of students gained five A* to C grades, including English and maths – three per cent more than last year.

And 80 per cent of students bagged five A* to Cs, which was four per cent up on 2009.

Cherry Willingham Community School overcame adversity with a 10 per cent increase in youngsters gaining good grades.

Despite a fire at the school in April, 47 per cent gained A* to C grades including English and maths, while 87 per cent got A* to C grades.

Jake Powell, 16, was one of the school's top achievers with two A* and seven As. His points score in chemistry was 295 out of a possible 300.

He said: "The results are very good so I'm going on to sixth form to do further maths, physics and chemistry.

"It was pretty hard work."

Headteacher Ed Fitzpatrick said: "We have had some fantastic individual performances and every single department has improved over the last year.

"We are restless to do even better next year."

Branston Community College students achieved 62 per cent with five A* to C passes and 93.5 per cent gained A* to C grades.

Student Ryan Muza, 16, gained three A* and six As.

"I revised really hard for some of the exams but you don't have to revise as hard for the subjects you naturally like. I want to be a linguist, I love languages and it's a different thing to do," he said.

Headteacher Peter Beighton said: "We talk a lot about ambition here because we are a business enterprise college and there are a lot of young people who are ambitious and they have got the wherewithal to do something about it."

See the pictures of pupils from around the county...

The Priory Academy LSST and William Farr School in Welton were two of the highest achievers in the county.

The LSST achieved a staggering pass rate of 99 per cent for five A* to C including English and Maths.

Headteacher Ian Jones said: "The students have worked very hard to achieve their results and we are always appreciative of the families and carers who provide so much support. On days like today it makes it all worth it."

At William Farr, 84 per cent of students gained an A* to C in at least five subjects.

Headteacher Paul Strong said: "It's a credit to the hard work of pupils and the dedication of the staff."

At Yarborough School, 40 per cent gained A* to C grades including English and maths which puts them in the top 25 per cent of schools nationally who are improving.

And 91 per cent got A* to C grades.

Headteacher Rob Boothroyd said: "We always expected the students to do well but these results have exceeded all predicted grades."

Bryn Roberts achieved eight A* or As, Declan McCann gained two A* and six As.

At St Peter and St Paul's Catholic High School 47 per cent of students gained at least five grade A* to C GCSEs including English and maths.

"The commitment and determination of pupils, staff and parents has really paid off," said headteacher Mr Kerridge,

Lincoln Christ's Hospital School's students gained 55 per cent A* to C including maths and English and 83 per cent got A* to C grades.

Deputy head Jane Rylands-Bolton said: "Given our truly comprehensive status and the fact that we offer a personalised curriculum we are very proud of what our students have achieved."

North Kesteven School celebrated their best ever GCSE examination results with 94 per cent achieving five A* to C grades, an improvement of 13 per cent on 2009 and 25 per cent on 2008.

And 56 per cent got five A*-C grades including English and maths.

Headteacher Martin Connor said: "We will not rest on our laurels and the new Year 11 cohort will be striving to match and exceed this year's great results."

Robert Pattinson School gained 58 per cent A* to C grades including English and maths and 84 per cent achieved five A* to C grades.