A-level, T-level and BTEC results day 2022: Look back at the pictures, videos and updates of Portsmouth area students celebrating stunning results

Welcome to the results day live blog.

The News has reporters across Portsmouth, Gosport and Fareham to cover the day, with students nervously awaiting their grades.

Stay updated throughout the day by following the live blog.

Education Secretary James Cleverly said students should be proud of their achievements, after dealing with significant disruption during the pandemic.

He said in a statement: ‘Every single student collecting their results today should be proud of their achievements. Not only have they studied throughout the pandemic, but they are the first group in three years to sit exams.

‘For that, I want to congratulate them and say a huge thank you to those who helped them get to this point.’

Almost 40 per cent of students nationally are thought likely to make use of the clearing system to get a place on a course.

Ucas chief executive Clare Marchant this week said Government departments and regulators are ’working to make sure that, through all of our social media messaging, that support is around’ for students today.

The total number of students accepted on to UK degree courses has decreased 2 per cent on the same point last year, with 425,830 taking up places so far.

This is according to initial Ucas figures.

The “majority” of students will get their first choice university place and not be crowded out by deferred students, according to James Cleverly.

In an interview with BBC Breakfast, he said: ‘We should remember that there has been an increase in the number of courses, and as you say the number of 18-year-olds has been increasing, but so has the number of university courses.

‘Predominantly of course, students are competing with the other people that took exams this year.

‘The number of deferments as a percentage of the overall applications is very low, something around 6.5% from memory.

‘So the vast majority of places will be for students who have sat exams this year.’

A total of 425,830 people have had places confirmed at university.

This is down 2 per cent from this point last year, according to Ucas.

In 2021, a record 435,430 people, from the UK and overseas, had places confirmed.

This year’s figure is the second highest on record, and up 16,870 compared with 2019 when exams were last held.

Ucas said 19 per cent more 18-year-olds in the UK achieved a place at either their first or insurance choice this year, compared with 2019.

Reporter Elsa Waterfield and photographer Chris Moorhouse are at Portsmouth High School.

Phoebe Harris, Daisy Cole, and Bella Mangnail, are all ecstatic with their results.

Daisy Cole is celebrating her A-level results. She suffered a lot of disruption due to learning from home.

She got four A’s, and will be studying sociology and criminology at Birmingham University.

Ms Cole said: ‘I’m off to get a big breakfast and some Champagne.’

Her mum Penny said her daughter, from Shedfield, worked extremely hard.

Juju Miah, pictured alongside her mum Rowshonara Rotna at Portsmouth High School, is going to read geography at the University of Oxford.

Students are celebrating their results at Portsmouth High School.