Students across Sussex are set for success today as they celebrate another record year of GCSE results.

Early results show most schools have improved or equalled last year's records.

Falmer High School, in Brighton, usually lingers near the bottom of the league table but marked a five per cent improvement on the number of pupils getting at least five A* to C grades, 36 per cent in total.

Headteacher Stuart McLaughlin said: "We are very pleased with the improvement. Staff and students have worked hard to improve exam results and their efforts have been rewarded."

At Durrington High School, in Worthing, students produced the best results ever with 52 per cent achieving five A* to C grades.

Hove Park School improved with 44 per cent getting five A* to C's, with an overall pass rate of 95 per cent.

Some schools which did not improve remained pleased with strong figures.

At Varndean School, in Brighton, GCSE results were the second best yet and included a large number of students who had transferred from Comart school, which closed last year.

A third of GCSE takers at Patcham High School, in Brighton, scored A* to C's against a national average of 56 per cent.

But headteacher Paula Sargent said: "We've held the same. It's good news for us, we have some excellent individual results."

At Hillcrest, in Hastings, 182 pupils sat GCSEs. The percentage of five passes (A* to G) went up from 83 to 85 per cent.

Independent schools achieved above-average scores in the Brighton and Hove area, with Roedean, Brighton and Hove High School, Brighton College and St Mary's Hall obtaining 100 per cent pass rates.

Roedean reported the biggest improvement from last year with 99.1 per cent overall A* to C results.

Brighton College has ten pupils achieving all A*s and 41 getting all As and A*s. They are the most successful school in Sussex for A*s, with 429.

Brighton and Hove High School had 100 per cent five A* to Cs.

Headteacher Ann Greatorex said: "We expect our students to be delighted when they receive their results. We are thrilled."

At St Mary's Hall in Eastern Road, Brighton, 94 per cent of students gained A* to C grades.

Headteacher Sue Meek said: "GCSE results are not about statistics but the achievement of each student. We identify the needs of each student to develop her talents and self-confidence."

Mary Bousted, of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers, said: "Today's GCSE results show we have many hard-working and responsible young people but too many leave school without the skills to approach the rest of their lives with confidence.

"The current curriculum is not helping as it demotivates and demoralises too many students.

"We need an education system which encourages real learning and moves away from a target culture which promotes teaching purely to pass tests."