West Midlands Mayor joins Cadbury College Sixth Form to celebrate A Level success

#WMStrong – Pupils from @CadburyCollege Sixth Form were joined by West Midlands Mayor, Andy Street @Andy4WM today (13Aug), who offered his congratulations and advice to students as they opened their much-anticipated #ALevelResults 

Alongside a number of university acceptances, the results have led to pupils securing their place on a diverse range of paths, including apprenticeships, further studies and work placements across the city and throughout the UK.

The sixth form is celebrating the number of A* – B grades, which has doubled compared to last year, reflecting the hard work of both staff and students throughout their time at Cadbury College.

For many, results day this year was moved to a new online format in order to prevent large gatherings, however a small number of students were invited to collect their grades in person and receive congratulations from Andy Street.

The West Midlands Mayor, who grew up in Northfield and attended school in Edgbaston, spoke to pupils including Lucy Lea, whose grades now mean she can start her degree apprenticeship with West Midlands Police in September, Samreen Chowdhury who will be studying Law at University of Birmingham thanks to two A*s and an A, and Zaynab Sohawon – a recent recipient of the prestigious Princess Diana award.

Andy Street was also able to discuss with students the West Midlands Combined Authority’s #WMStrong summer programme. The campaign offers thousands of training courses, work placements and other upskilling opportunities to prepare young people for a future in employment or further education.

Amal Iman chatted with Andy Street after receiving her grades:

“It’s been a surreal end to my studies but I’m extremely happy with my results, my grades are exactly what I needed to go on to university. I had offers from Kings College and Manchester, but the University of Birmingham is really strong for my course and it’s great to be staying in my home city.”

Andy Street said: “Final year students and teachers at Cadbury College Sixth Form have had to adapt to challenging circumstances extremely quickly, but they should all be incredibly proud of the results that have been achieved today.

“We know that young people are expected to be hardest hit by the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic, but I want them to be assured that we are focussed on ensuring they can have a prosperous future with the help of our #WMStrong programme – especially if they haven’t gained the exam results they were hoping for.

“From construction and digital, to healthcare and engineering, we have a range of jobs, training courses, and apprenticeships available on the WMCA’s website, and I would urge those looking for a next step after today to see how we can help. These may be difficult economic times because of the coronavirus pandemic, but we are determined to help young people find work.”

Julia Stevens, Principal of Cadbury Sixth Form College, commented:

“I am very proud of all our students, who have so many opportunities ahead of them after today’s results, and thank our staff for their resilience and support during what has been a challenging few months.

“We welcome the WMCA’s #WMStrong campaign and would like to reassure all college leavers that we will continue to offer our support – whether it’s career guidance or advice on how best to prepare for university.”