THE head teacher of Peebles High School admits he's proud of his pupils as exam results went live this week.

Campbell Wilson heaped praise on the students who have worked all year on their Nationals, Highers and Advanced Highers to deliver further improvements at the Peeblesshire secondary.

Although breakdowns for individual schools won’t be publicly available for another few weeks, Mr Wilson couldn't hide his delight at the exam results.

He told us: "We are thrilled with the performance of our young people in their SQA examinations this year.

"We targeted closing the attainment gap last session and are pleased to see the hard work of our young people being rewarded with over 80 percent of our fourth year learners attaining at least five qualifications.

"Every child can experience success in examinations and we will aim to improve on this even further next session.

“We are also very proud of our performance in delivering our highest ever attainment in S5 Higher qualifications - this is a fantastic reward for our young people’s hard work as well as the unwavering support and positive involvement of our parents and the determination and hard work of our talented and committed teachers.

“Not everyone will have the results that they had hoped for but anyone who is disappointed and has concerns about the future choices after receiving their results shouldn’t hesitate to contact the school office and speak to a member of staff who will be there to help.”

More exams than ever before were taken in Scottish Borders schools this year.

And the pass rates held high with 96 per cent of all S4s in the region gaining National 5 English, and 82 per cent achieving National 5 maths.

There was also a significant increase in young people gaining qualifications at SCQF Levels 1-3.

Councillor Carol Hamilton, who is responsible for education at the local authority, spent Tuesday morning at Eyemouth High School with pupils as they received their results by text and post.

She said: “For some, the results they receive today will be vital in getting a place at university, but for many others they will just be one small step towards a job, a Modern Apprenticeship, further education or simply being able to take their preferred subjects and qualifications in their next school year.

“Whatever their situation, I’d like to commend the young people of the Scottish Borders on their results and hard work this year, and thank their teachers, parents and carers for their support.”

The destinations of school leavers in the Borders also remains encouraging with 96.7 per cent going into higher or further education, training or employment – an increase from last year’s 95.3 per cent.

Across the region head teachers expressed their pride and delight.

Kevin Ryalls, head of Galashiels Academy, told us: “We would like to recognise the notable individual achievements of many of our young people, including almost all of our S4 pupils who achieved at least five National Qualifications.

“We also saw an increase in the number of young people achieving Higher passes in S5. We would like to recognise the hard work and perseverance shown by our senior pupils, staff and parents and carers during the exams.

“We congratulate our young people for their SQA examinations successes, as well as for the wide variety of achievements that have also been accomplished across the wider life of the school in the last session.”

And Justin Sinclair, headteacher at Earlston High, said: “I am delighted with the performance of our pupils in this year’s SQA examinations.

“We have had a record breaking year, particularly in S5. I want to pay tribute to the hard work of all our pupils and staff.

“The number of young people attaining qualifications from college is also exceptionally encouraging.

“Our record of continuous improvement and focus on excellence for all is evident in these superb results.”