Congratulations Y11
Students at Beacon Academy in Cleethorpes were full of smiles as they opened their long-awaited envelopes on GCSE Results Day 2025.
Among those was Dasha, who arrived in the UK with her mother as refugees in 2022, fleeing their native Ukraine after the war with Russia broke out. She started at Beacon Academy in Year 8 and has gone from strength to strength in the years since, achieving two 9s, one 8 and three 6s in her GCSEs.
Former host, and former Vice Chair of Governors at Beacon Academy, Terry Brown, was on hand to support Dasha on this emotional day – and couldn’t hide his pride.
“Dasha and her mother had a terrible time in Kyiv. Dasha saw things she shouldn’t have seen and was traumatised and non-verbal” he said. “I’m incredibly proud at the results she’s got and the way she’s reacted to school. I don’t think that would have happened without the incredible commitment from the staff at Beacon Academy, and I want to publicly thank them for all their efforts and commitment. They’ve gone above and beyond to help not just Dasha, but other students.”
Dasha said: “I felt a bit nervous, but I’m so pleased with my grades. Coming from Ukraine and settling in here was extremely difficult at first, but everyone was so nice to me, which made it much easier. The students, staff and teachers have been so helpful with everything and patient with me, and I’m really grateful for that. I’ve absolutely loved my time at Beacon and it’s been such a good experience.”
She will now study at Franklin College and plans to attend university before eventually pursuing a career in business or medicine.
Owen Kirk, who has special educational needs, opened his results alongside proud parents Selina and Lee, and credited the staff at Beacon Academy for helping him achieve his goals.
“I’ve done better than expected, and I owe it to the staff here who have stuck with me and helped me change, because I didn’t do too well at the start,” he said.
Emotional mum Selina said: “At one point I didn’t think we’d ever get to today. I was just really proud that he sat his exams and got through them, but to actually pass them all, is amazing. Beacon Academy is the most amazing school, and the SEN team here are absolutely fantastic. He really wouldn’t have done this without them.”
Owen plans to study Plumbing at college and eventually begin an apprenticeship.
Kacey Briggs achieved an incredible combination of Distinctions, 8s, 7s and 6s in her GCSEs. “It’s been a bit of a struggle, but I’ve tried to get the best grades possible and worked really hard. The staff have been great and have really supported and helped me out,” she said.
She now plans to study Further Maths, History and Physics at Franklin College before pursuing a career in Health and Safety.
Adrian Wallace achieved four 8s, one 7, two 6s and a 5. “I feel really good,” he said. “It’s been hard but my friends and parents have really helped me with revision – it’s made it a lot easier than it would’ve been without them.”
He will go on to study Maths, Physics and Chemistry at Franklin College.
Proud mum Charlotte said: “He has worked so, so hard over the last few years. I’m so proud of him, because he does challenge himself. He’s absolutely amazing. He’s just happy because of the bet we made when he was in Year 7 – I said for every 9 he gets he’ll get £100, and for every 8, £75. I regret it now!”
David Whittaker, Chief Educational Officer at Wellspring Academy Trust and Executive Principal at Beacon Academy, said: “Today is a really special day for everybody. We have to bear in mind that this year group were coming into Year 7 during the pandemic,so it’s been a very disruptive time for them, and they’ve had to work hard and show loads of resilience.”
“Secondary education has been a real challenge for them because of everything the pandemic threw at them. Now is a time to celebrate and move onto those future destinations, but we’ve also got to remember that there are always highs and lows in GCSEs.”
“It’s a really great time, but it can also be a really challenging time. We’ve got to reflect on having the resilience to move on and take the opportunities that are there – but we’ve also got to celebrate the achievements of those who have really worked hard throughout their time at school.”
