A-Level results day: Rochdale students discover what comes next

Students across Rochdale have been opening their A-Level results today, bringing two years of study, examinations and anxious waiting to an end as young people discover whether they have secured university places, apprenticeships or their next step into employment.

Results day on Thursday 13 August comes during another strong year nationally. Across the UK, 28.5% of A-Level entries were awarded an A* or A, while in England the figure was 28.3%. More than 262,000 UK 18-year-olds had been accepted onto university courses by results day.

In the North West, 26.5% of A-Level entries received an A* or A in 2026, compared with 26.6% in 2025 and 23.5% in 2019. The figures continue to show a substantial regional divide, with London recording 32.7% of entries at A* or A this year.

For Rochdale, particular attention falls on Rochdale Sixth Form College, which has developed a strong academic record since opening in September 2010. The college was created following longstanding concerns about post-16 attainment in the borough and the number of local students travelling outside Rochdale for sixth-form education.

The college's early results quickly attracted national attention. It was ranked second among sixth form colleges for value added in Department for Education performance tables in 2013 and later achieved first place for A-Level progress for several consecutive years. By January 2019 it had been ranked first in Department for Education performance tables for five years running, and in 2021 it won Sixth Form College of the Year at the Tes FE Awards.

More recent government performance data has continued to show strong progress. Department for Education figures for 2024 recorded an average A-Level result of B- at Rochdale Sixth Form College and an A-Level progress score of +0.41, classified as well above average. The 2025 figures again recorded an average result of B-, with an average point score of 37.33 and a progress measure of +0.48, also classified as well above average.

The historical picture matters because Rochdale Sixth Form College was established in part to tackle a period in which the borough's A-Level performance had lagged behind national averages. Its subsequent performance provides a significant contrast with the concerns that led to the college being established more than 15 years ago.

Today's results are also notable politically because Rochdale's MP, Paul Waugh, has recently joined the Department for Education. Mr Waugh was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education in July 2026, giving Rochdale a direct connection to national education policy.

Today's A-Level cohort completed almost all of its education before Mr Waugh entered the department, so the 2026 results cannot reasonably be attributed to his tenure. Future results, however, will increasingly provide part of the national record against which the Government's education policies — and the ministers responsible for them — are judged.

That will be particularly relevant in areas such as Rochdale because regional inequality remains one of the clearest challenges facing education ministers. This year's figures show 32.7% of A-Level entries in London receiving A* or A, compared with 26.5% in the North West and 23.1% in both the North East and East Midlands.

For students receiving their results today, however, national statistics and ministerial records are unlikely to be the immediate priority. For some, the results will confirm university places they have worked towards for years. Others will move into apprenticeships, employment or further study, while students who have missed required grades can consider Clearing and alternative routes.

Whatever the individual results, today marks the end of one chapter for Rochdale's students and the beginning of another.