Working alongside our 2024 Year 11 cohort has been both an honour and a privilege. This is not only my own sentiment, but a shared sentiment among all of the staff at Duke of Kent School, both teaching and non-teaching. We as a community could not be prouder of their collective achievements, recording some of the best GCSE results the school has ever seen. For us, it is also the individual outcomes, at the end of a journey some of our pupils began as three year olds in our nursery. We have endeavoured to nurture them, and not just their minds but their spirit, their determination, their joy, and their confidence to face life’s challenges and drive on. 

This year saw an overall GCSE pass rate of 99%, with a commendable 84% of our pupils gaining at least one grade 7 or above. 100% of pupils passed their Maths, English and Science exams. Indeed, over half of all the grades awarded were a grade 7, 8 or 9. The cohort average across all subjects was a grade 7, with grade 9 making up 13% of the total. This is a truly fantastic achievement for our pupils, particularly given that national outcomes saw a decline this year. Indeed, each one of our pupils gained entry to their first choice school or college. 

It will not be the same without this group. We will miss their humour, their musical and dramatic talents, the common room hijinks, and the insistence that it was always their turn to go into lunch first! But we have every confidence in each and every one of them and look forward to their return as lifelong alumni and part of our community. Congratulations to Duke of Kent School, Class of 2024!

Damian Allen

Head of Pupil Progress