Questions · KCS Wimbledon
What happened to KCS’s top GCSE grades after 2012?
How KCS’s GCSE A* and A*–A shares moved from 2012 to 2016, before the switch to 9–1 grades.
Covers: KCS Wimbledon’s GCSE results for 2012–2016, as shares of entries on the old A*–G grades. It stops short of 2017, the year grading changed, and of the 9–1 grades that followed, which use a different scale.
Generated illustration · credits
The answer
On the old A*–G grades, the share of KCS’s GCSE entries graded A* was 13.3 percentage points higher in 2013 than in 2012. This was no one-summer spike, since the share stayed above its 2012 level in every year from 2013 through 2016. That is description, from the published results, and no statistical test of a lasting change. Tables like these are silent on causes, so a change that lasts is best taken to the school, which knows what else happened in those years and, unlike its tables, can be asked.
On this page
The figures
These figures belong to the years and groups discussed in this article. Changing your shortlist leaves this example as it is.
2012 · GCSE / IGCSE A*–G
KCS · 2012 A*
63.4%
The share awarded A* on the old letter-grade scale.
- What it counts
- Legacy grade entries
- Total behind the figure
- Unknown / not recorded
2012 · GCSE / IGCSE A*–G
KCS · 2012 A*–A
90.4%
The share awarded A* or A on the old letter-grade scale. Missing years remain blank.
- What it counts
- Legacy grade entries
- Total behind the figure
- Unknown / not recorded
2013 · GCSE / IGCSE A*–G
KCS · 2013 A*
76.7%
The share awarded A* on the old letter-grade scale.
- What it counts
- Legacy grade entries
- Total behind the figure
- Unknown / not recorded
2013 · GCSE / IGCSE A*–G
KCS · 2013 A*–A
96%
The share awarded A* or A on the old letter-grade scale. Missing years remain blank.
- What it counts
- Legacy grade entries
- Total behind the figure
- Unknown / not recorded
2014 · GCSE / IGCSE A*–G
KCS · 2014 A*
76.7%
The share awarded A* on the old letter-grade scale.
- What it counts
- Legacy grade entries
- Total behind the figure
- Unknown / not recorded
2014 · GCSE / IGCSE A*–G
KCS · 2014 A*–A
Unknown / not recorded
The share awarded A* or A on the old letter-grade scale. Missing years remain blank.
- What it counts
- Legacy grade entries
- Total behind the figure
- Unknown / not recorded
2015 · GCSE / IGCSE A*–G
KCS · 2015 A*
85.1%
The share awarded A* on the old letter-grade scale.
- What it counts
- Legacy grade entries
- Total behind the figure
- Unknown / not recorded
2015 · GCSE / IGCSE A*–G
KCS · 2015 A*–A
97.1%
The share awarded A* or A on the old letter-grade scale. Missing years remain blank.
- What it counts
- Legacy grade entries
- Total behind the figure
- Unknown / not recorded
2016 · GCSE / IGCSE A*–G
KCS · 2016 A*
77.9%
The share awarded A* on the old letter-grade scale.
- What it counts
- Legacy grade entries
- Total behind the figure
- Unknown / not recorded
2016 · GCSE / IGCSE A*–G
KCS · 2016 A*–A
96%
The share awarded A* or A on the old letter-grade scale. Missing years remain blank.
- What it counts
- Legacy grade entries
- Total behind the figure
- Unknown / not recorded
Five summers on the old scale
These results come in letter grades that were then simply the grades and only later became the old ones. The A* share is a view from the summit alone; A*–A takes in the grade beneath it as well, so a change at the very top can look different once the As are counted in. Both are shares of subject entries, not of children, and neither says how many pupils came away with a particular set of results.
How far does the pattern run?
Two adjacent years would be slender evidence. A run that holds through 2016 is firmer ground, though how long it would have gone on, the figures can’t say.
The A*–A series has a hole in it at 2014, and there the note under each A*–A figure above, promising that missing years remain blank, keeps its word; the summers either side may seem to suggest a number, but we can’t assume one. After 2016 the series stops at the change in GCSE grading, since an A* share and a grade 9 share measure different things, and a line through both would make the history look simpler than it was.
What was happening at King’s?
The entry may have changed, or the subjects and qualifications pupils took, or the teaching, or the examination boards, each leaving much the same mark on a column of percentages, which can no more tell them apart than a thermometer can tell a lit fire from a shut window. A proper history would set dated changes beside the results. A policy introduced around the time the results moved is a fair place to start, though neat dates prove nothing on their own.
What the finding is good for
The finding is best used for comparison, on the same years and the same old A* band, set against another school and then widened to A*–A, with the 2014 gap left in plain sight. That can help explain this stretch of King’s history. It can’t forecast the results of a pupil joining now, a decade later and on the far side of a change of scale.
Try the comparison
KCS Wimbledon and St Paul’s: Legacy GCSE / IGCSE entries at A*, 2012–2016
Share of published legacy-scale entries awarded A* in the named examination year.
KCS Wimbledon’s recorded result was typically 1.9 percentage points lower than St Paul’s across 5 shared years (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016). “Typically” means the median of the annual differences.
- KCS Wimbledon
- St Paul’s
Each school against the same scale and years.
Exam eras: 2012–16. The rule beneath the axis marks exam conditions, not schools.
A break in a line means a year has no comparable figure; nothing is estimated. The figures behind the chart are listed below.
Exact values, and years left out
| School and year | Figure | What it counts | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Paul’s School 2012 | 82.5%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entries | Source and full figures: St Paul’s School, 2012 |
| St Paul’s School 2013 | 78.6%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entries | Source and full figures: St Paul’s School, 2013 |
| St Paul’s School 2014 | 84.3%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entries | Source and full figures: St Paul’s School, 2014 |
| St Paul’s School 2015 | 82.3%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entries | Source and full figures: St Paul’s School, 2015 |
| St Paul’s School 2016 | 77.8%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entries | Source and full figures: St Paul’s School, 2016 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2012 | 63.4%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entries | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2012 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2013 | 76.7%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entries | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2013 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2014 | 76.7%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entries | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2014 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2015 | 85.1%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entries | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2015 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2016 | 77.9%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entries | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2016 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2014 | Unknown / not recordedGCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entries | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2014 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2012 | Unknown / not recordedGCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1915 | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2012 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2013 | Unknown / not recordedGCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1865 | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2013 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2014 | Unknown / not recordedGCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1619 | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2014 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2015 | Unknown / not recordedGCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1575 | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2015 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2016 | Unknown / not recordedGCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1593 | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2016 |
| St Paul’s School 2012 | Unknown / not recordedGCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1901 | Source and full figures: St Paul’s School, 2012 |
| St Paul’s School 2013 | Unknown / not recordedGCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1867 | Source and full figures: St Paul’s School, 2013 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2012 | 62.6%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1915 | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2012 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2013 | 75.8%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1865 | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2013 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2014 | 76.7%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1619 | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2014 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2015 | 85.1%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1575 | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2015 |
| King’s College School, Wimbledon 2016 | 77.9%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1593 | Source and full figures: King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2016 |
| St Paul’s School 2012 | 82.5%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1901 | Source and full figures: St Paul’s School, 2012 |
| St Paul’s School 2013 | 78.6%GCSE / IGCSE A*–G · Grade awards | Legacy grade entriesOut of 1867 | Source and full figures: St Paul’s School, 2013 |
Record details
Each figure’s status as recorded, the precision it was printed to, and its record code.
- St Paul’s School, 2012: Primary / Secondary · 1 decimal place ·
fig:st_pauls_gcse:13 - St Paul’s School, 2013: Primary / Secondary · 1 decimal place ·
fig:st_pauls_gcse:14 - St Paul’s School, 2014: Primary / Secondary · 1 decimal place ·
fig:st_pauls_gcse:15 - St Paul’s School, 2015: Primary / Secondary · 1 decimal place ·
fig:st_pauls_gcse:16 - St Paul’s School, 2016: Primary / Secondary · 1 decimal place ·
fig:st_pauls_gcse:17 - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2012: Secondary / Primary · 1 decimal place ·
fig:kcs_gcse_headline:11 - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2013: Secondary / Primary · 1 decimal place ·
fig:kcs_gcse_headline:12 - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2014: Secondary / Primary · 1 decimal place ·
fig:kcs_gcse_headline:13 - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2015: Secondary / Primary · 1 decimal place ·
fig:kcs_gcse_headline:14 - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2016: Secondary / Primary · 1 decimal place ·
fig:kcs_gcse_headline:15 - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2014: Primary · As published; not an exact number ·
research:kcs:2014:gcse-igcse:retrospective-a-star-a - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2012: Primary · As published; not an exact number ·
research:kcs:2012:isc-annual-gcse-letter - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2013: Primary · As published; not an exact number ·
research:kcs:2013:isc-annual-gcse-letter - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2014: Primary · As published; not an exact number ·
research:kcs:2014:isc-annual-gcse-letter - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2015: Primary · As published; not an exact number ·
research:kcs:2015:isc-annual-gcse-letter - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2016: Primary · As published; not an exact number ·
research:kcs:2016:isc-annual-gcse-letter - St Paul’s School, 2012: Primary · As published; not an exact number ·
research:st-pauls:2012:gcse-igcse:total:d15624ef - St Paul’s School, 2013: Primary · As published; not an exact number ·
research:st-pauls:2013:gcse-igcse:total:9e24ab13 - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2012: archived source; source population and version retained · 0 decimal places ·
research:kcs:2012:gap-audit:isc-annual-gcse-letter-derived - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2013: archived source; source population and version retained · 0 decimal places ·
research:kcs:2013:gap-audit:isc-annual-gcse-letter-derived - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2014: archived source; source population and version retained · 0 decimal places ·
research:kcs:2014:gap-audit:isc-annual-gcse-letter-derived - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2015: archived source; source population and version retained · 0 decimal places ·
research:kcs:2015:gap-audit:isc-annual-gcse-letter-derived - King’s College School, Wimbledon, 2016: archived source; source population and version retained · 0 decimal places ·
research:kcs:2016:gap-audit:isc-annual-gcse-letter-derived - St Paul’s School, 2012: Source-specific grade percentages verified · 0 decimal places ·
research:st-pauls:2012:six-school-audit:gcse-igcse:derived-published-total - St Paul’s School, 2013: Source-specific grade percentages verified · 0 decimal places ·
research:st-pauls:2013:six-school-audit:gcse-igcse:derived-published-total
- KCS Wimbledon · 2012: research observation outside matched schoolwide scope; incompatible definitions; missing value
- KCS Wimbledon · 2013: research observation outside matched schoolwide scope; incompatible definitions; missing value
- KCS Wimbledon · 2014: incompatible definitions; missing value; research observation outside matched schoolwide scope
- KCS Wimbledon · 2015: research observation outside matched schoolwide scope; incompatible definitions; missing value
- KCS Wimbledon · 2016: research observation outside matched schoolwide scope; incompatible definitions; missing value
- St Paul’s · 2012: research observation outside matched schoolwide scope; incompatible definitions; missing value
- St Paul’s · 2013: research observation outside matched schoolwide scope; incompatible definitions; missing value
Where these figures come from
Each record gives the full definition, the documents it came from and what we checked.
King’s College School, Wimbledon: GCSE results, 2012, A*-G
The share awarded A* on the old letter-grade scale. The share awarded A* or A on the old letter-grade scale. Missing years remain blank.
Checked against the original: top band and top two bands.
King’s College School, Wimbledon: GCSE results, 2013, A*-G
The share awarded A* on the old letter-grade scale. The share awarded A* or A on the old letter-grade scale. Missing years remain blank.
Checked against the original: top band and top two bands.
King’s College School, Wimbledon: GCSE results, 2014, A*-G
The share awarded A* on the old letter-grade scale. The share awarded A* or A on the old letter-grade scale. Missing years remain blank.
Checked against the original: top band.
King’s College School, Wimbledon: GCSE results, 2015, A*-G
The share awarded A* on the old letter-grade scale. The share awarded A* or A on the old letter-grade scale. Missing years remain blank.
Checked against the original: top band and top two bands.
King’s College School, Wimbledon: GCSE results, 2016, A*-G
The share awarded A* on the old letter-grade scale. The share awarded A* or A on the old letter-grade scale. Missing years remain blank.
Checked against the original: top band and top two bands.
- The pattern ends in 2016 and uses only comparable results on the old A* scale.
- Nothing here tests for a permanent statistical change, explains its cause or forecasts the quality of the school.
About this answer
Written by The Schools Record from the sources identified above. The earlier research listed below helped us find the questions and passages to examine. Figures in the article come from the current record, so an older research document cannot substitute an earlier number.
- The Schools Record · article archive · September 2026 · pages 10–11
Reviewed for this edition on ; next review by . That review covers this reading of the cited evidence. It does not mean that every original historical publication has been checked again.
Read corrections and unresolved publication differencesWhere next
What would you like to understand next?
What does the wider grade distribution show?
What did KCS’s later numbered-grade table count?
Which periods cross a change of definition?
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