BARNET schools have exceeded the national average for students awarded an A grade or better, according to national A-level exam results.

Figures from 11 of the borough’s 17 secondary schools show 17 per cent of students were awarded an A* grade and 31 per cent achieved an A grade, well above the national averages for A* grade of eight per cent and 18 per cent for A grade.

The Henrietta Barnett School in Hampstead Garden Suburb improved its overall points scores from 2010 by nine per cent, The Ravenscroft School in Barnet Lane by eight per cent and both Finchley Catholic High School and Mill Hill High School upped their results by seven per cent.

Cabinet member for education, children and families, Councillor Andrew Harper, said: “We’ve seen yet another great improvement on results for which students should be very proud.”

Overall, the percentage of students receiving grade A or better in 2011 remained unchanged from 2010, at 27 per cent.