A sixth form college in a deprived part of east London has outdone some of the country’s top public schools by winning eight offers of places at Oxford and Cambridge.
Every one of the pupils bound for Oxbridge at the London Academy of Excellence in Stratford is from an immigrant background, with several having unemployed parents or living in council homes.
Meanwhile, one pupil at Scottish public school Gordonstoun, attended by Prince Charles, has received an Oxbridge offer this year according to reports whilst just five from Sherborne public school in Dorset have been accepted, along with a mere three at Bedales in Hampshire.
The London Academy of Excellence – nicknamed the Eton of the East End – is a selective free school for pupils aged 16 to 18, which opened three years ago. Four-fifths of the pupils are from families in which no one has attended university, while a quarter are on free school meals. Some 70 per cent are from ethnic minorities. Applicants must have at least five GCSE A grades, while the focus is on traditional A-level subjects rather than modern options seen as less rigorous.
Headmaster John Weeks, who was previously deputy head at Brighton College said ‘high aspirations’ were a key factor behind the eight Oxbridge offers this year – which are conditional on the pupils achieving their expected A-level results. Their parents have worked really hard in often difficult and low-paid jobs. They have seen what their parents have had to go through and they are very highly motivated.’
