Students of the east London state school where pupils have received more Oxbridge offers than Eton have said they never had ‘limits placed on the goals they want to achieve.’
Brampton Manor, an academy in Newham, announced last week that 55 of its pupils had received conditional offers to study at Oxford and Cambridge, while esteemed private school Eton College secured 48.
Brampton pupils Afril Patel, Daniel Harry and Zoe Abereoje all received offers to Cambridge or Oxford, and appeared on Good Morning Britain today where they praised the ‘unwavering support’ of their school.
Afril, who has received an offer to study engineering at Cambridge, praised the support and resources she has received from the school, as well as the ‘work ethic’ of her fellow students.
Brampton Manor, an academy in Newham, announced last week that 55 of its pupils had received conditional offers to study at Oxford and Cambridge
Brampton pupils Afril Patel, Daniel Harry and Zoe Abereoje all received offers to Cambridge or Oxford, and appeared on Good Morning Britain today
‘I think as soon as we apply to Brampton we’re told we don’t have limits on the goals that we want to achieve, she said.
‘A lot of students, like me, in our cohort wanted to go to schools like Oxford and Cambridge and because of the unwavering support from Brampton, as well as all the resources we are given and the work ethic of the students ourselves, is the reason we have so many offers like we have.’
Zoe will be studying philosophy, politics and economics at Oxford, and while she has no set plans for the future is thrilled to have bagged a place at one of the county’s top universities.
‘It does feel really good to be able to study there,’ she said. ‘I’m so excited.’
Brampton Manor set up its sixth form in 2012 in the hope of getting more disadvantaged students into top institutions
Afril, who has received an offer to study engineering at Cambridge, praised the support and resources she and other students have received from the school
Daniel, who will be studying law at Cambridge, said that the group see beating Eton for the most offers is an ‘added plus’
‘I think it gives me a lot of opportunities, if I have the opportunity to study, but I’m just grateful to have the offer.’
Daniel Harry, who will be studying law at Cambridge, said that the group see beating Eton for the most offers is an ‘added plus’, but that they’re more concerned with increasing ‘state school recognition’.
‘I guess the most important thing for us is seeing an increase in state school recognition and an increase in people like us getting offers to the very top universities,’ Daniel explained.
‘So achieving this particular feat is really great, but we don’t see it as the main focus.
‘It’s more about us working hard and ensuring we are told we can achieve our best from the very beginning and ensuring we are given the resources.’
Brampton Manor set up its sixth form in 2012 in the hope of getting more disadvantaged students into top institutions.
Many of its former pupils have been the first in their family to attend university.
The majority are from ethnic minority backgrounds, in receipt of free school meals (FSMs) or will be the first in their family to attend university.
From 2015 to this year, state school intake has gone up from 62.3 per cent to 70 per cent at Cambridge and 55.6 per cent to 68.7 per cent at Oxford.
Announcing the news, Brampton Manor said on Twitter: ‘Delighted to announce that a record 55 students have received conditional offers to study at Oxford and Cambridge universities in autumn 2021. Massive congratulations to our highly motivated, ambitious and capable students.
‘Despite the Covid pandemic, a record number of students have shown resilience and determination to secure offers from two of the most prestigious universities in the world.’
Many private schools which traditionally sent high proportions of their students to both universities have been feeling the pinch in recent years.
This is due partly to aggressive efforts of Oxbridge to shed their elitist image and dramatically increase diversity.
Eton was forced to defend its performance. In a letter to disappointed parents, the school’s deputy head Tom Hawkins wrote: ‘Each year we see very strong Etonian applicants disappointed, and unfortunately there have been more boys in this position this year.
‘Whilst the admissions process has some way to run, there are strong results at other leading UK universities,’ he added in a letter reported by the Telegraph last month.
Meanwhile, Daniel previously told PA: ‘In general, it definitely feels great to finally see that state school students are getting the recognition that they really do deserve.
‘I guess it’s just the fact that talent from underrepresented backgrounds are finally being recognised. It’s finally being seen as a good thing for students of all backgrounds to get into the top universities.’
Daniel has not yet been able to visit the prestigious university. He said: ‘It feels like a world apart from where I live currently, being an inner-city kind of child, but at the same time it definitely is something that I would like to experience given the academic and cultural history that Cambridge does have.’