There were plenty of smiling students at Shafton ALC as the school celebrated its best ever GCSE results.

This year 41 per cent of pupils achieved five A* to C grades - including maths and English - topping the government floor target of 40 per cent.

"Obviously we're really pleased with that," acting headteacher Lisa Allott said.

"It's the first time the school has beaten the government benchmark. It's something we want to see and keep building on."

Lisa said she was particularly pleased with the school's progress in maths, with grades up by seven per cent.

Last year the school achieved its best results so far - with 38 per cent of pupils obtaining five A* to C grades.

Lisa said she was delighted with the continued improvement and this year a number of students had achieved a multitude of A* and A grades.

Hollie Gillespie, 16, from Monk Bretton, picked up her results with her ecstatic parents.

She got four A*s, four As and a B and is off to study A-Levels at Greenhead College, Huddersfield.

Hollie said she will probably go for a meal with her parents  to celebrate her success and will be off to London this weekend for the Challenge Cup rugby final.

"I'm over the moon," dad Richard, 49, added.

Roseanne Hurst, 16, from Cundy Cross said she was pleasantly surprised with her grades after bagging seven As, an A* and a C.

"I'm definitely happy with these results," she said.

"They're a bit better than I expected really."