HIGH-ACHIEVING students at a Darlington school have been rewarded for their excellent exam results.

Nearly 400 pupils, staff, families and friends gathered in the John Caden Hall at Carmel RC College for the school's annual presentation evening and prizegiving.

The event celebrated the achievements of pupils over the past year at GCSE and A-Level.

This year's examinations saw Carmel pupils achieving a 99.5 per cent pass rate at A-level and 84 per cent achieving five or more A* to C grades at GCSE level, with 75 per cent including English and maths.

Ada Burns, chief executive of Darlington Borough Council, was guest of honour for the ceremony and presented the prizes to the pupils.

In her address, she spoke about the positive position that Darlington occupies in the economic and industrial landscapes of the Tees Valley. Other invited guests included Father John Caden, councillors Allan Coultas and Charles Johnson together with representatives from Hays Travel, which sponsored gifts for the students of a USB pen.

After the ceremony, pupils and their families were invited to join the staff and guests in the atrium of the newly-opened link building for drinks and canapes.

They were also invited to look around the new buildings, which include the science, vocational, art and geography departments.

The £10.5m building programme at Carmel is due for completion in May next year.

Full list of the prizewinners: John Caden Cup - Michael Daynes, Charlotte Allinson. The Religious Studies Award - Helen Davies. Business Studies Prize - Rebecca Tinkler. The Curtis Office Furniture Prize For Outstanding Achievement In Art - Daniel Morris. Almit Science Award Chemistry - Marcus Sims. Almit Science Award Physics - Marcus Sims.

Almit Science Award Biology - Oliver Parkes. ICT Award - Rebecca Clarke. Sport Studies Trophy - David Baines. Tees Valley In Business Award For Excellence In Technology - David Baines. A Level Geography Prize - Louisa Picciau. The History Prize - Lorna Urwin. Electronics - James Bird. Mathematics - David Quick. Modern Foreign Language - Marcus Sims. Music - Michael Musgrave. English Language - Helen Davies, Jonathon Murphy. English Literature - Lorna Urwin. Psychology - Jonathon Murphy. The James Corr Prize For Best A-Level Results - Marcus Sims, five As. Technocopy Prize For Best GCSE Results - Patrick Wharton, nine A* and one A; Heather Hind, eight A* and two As; Sarah Conlon, seven A* and three As.