Stephanie Savvides couldn't hold back the tears after opening her A-Level results at Woodhouse College on Thursday.

But she was weeping tears of joy after achieving three A grades and a place at Durham University to study education.

Stephanie, 18, of Bethune Avenue, Friern Barnet, sobbed: "I didn't even think I'd even passed my sociology exam, I've spent all week worrying about it."

As students at the Woodhouse Road, North Finchley, college opened their envelopes, principal Ann Robinson warned that results could not keep rising forever.

"Our philosophy is that we want every student to do a little bit better than they think they can," she explained.

"Our feeling is that we're going to be in the third place nationally for further education colleges as we were last year."

She raised a warning note: "Pressure on staff and students has increased and I for one would like to see that stop.

"We can't go on delivering more and more every year. Standards in schools and colleges are high and will stay high. People must understand they can't get much higher."

At St Michael's Catholic Grammar in Nether Street, North Finchley, there was certainly no sign of results dipping.

Nearly 100 per cent of students scored A to E grades, with 81 per cent scoring A to Cs, down slightly on last year. On results, deputy headteacher Julian Ward said: "We have had several years of very rigorous Ofsted inspections and public accountability in terms of league tables.

"We have got more and more students wishing to go to university, under those circumstances you would expect results to improve."

He added: "People have got to realise that the regimes in which schools are operating are very different from when they were at school."

Pupils Michelle Dugan and Amanda Filippi secured ten A grades between them in A and AS Levels.

Michelle, 17, of Worcester Crescent, Mill Hill, gained three A grades in maths, chemistry and biology and two A grades in AS Level further maths and IT.

She is now looking forward to taking a year out to work at IBM in Hampshire, but will be taking up a place at Cambridge University the following year to study computer science.

"I've had a lot of support from the school, and I think it helped in some ways that the school is an all girls one," she said.

"There was a long wait for the results, I thought that I would do well, it's now just nice to have it all confirmed."

Amanda, 18, of Grosvenor Road, Finchley, celebrated As in chemistry, biology and French as well as an As-Level grade A in maths. She took Italian last year, gaining an A grade, and is now planning to study bio-chemistry at New College, Oxford.

"I'm feeling very relieved, these results were better than I expected. I'm completely shocked," she said.

Her father, Franco Filippi, added: "I'm very proud but I expected it, we've never had a report which didn't say she was a pleasure to teach."

Staff at Hasmonean High School with campuses in Mill Hill and Hendon were celebrating the best year ever for A and B grades. Results were slightly up on last year: 99 per cent of students scoring A to E, as opposed to 98 per cent last year, and 90 per cent posting A to C, up one per cent.

Deputy headteacher Beverley Perin said: "We are absolutely delighted with these outstanding results. They are a tribute to the high standards of teaching and learning in the school. Head girl Elisheva Deutsch and Daniel Westbrook both scored four grade As. Another 16 pupils achieved at least three grade As.

The Henrietta Barnett in Central Square, Hampstead Garden Suburb, also saw a slight rise in results.

Students achieving A to C rose six per cent to 90 per cent, while 98.9 per cent of pupils scored A to E grades, up from 98.8 per cent last year. At St Mary's C of E School in Downage, Hendon, nearly 86 per cent of students achieved A to E grades; while 47 per cent achieved A to C in their A-Levels. At Finchley Catholic High, in Woodside Lane, North Finchley, 91 per cent scored A to E with 48 per cent of pupils achieving A to C grades.

Across the borough, all-boys Queen Elizabeth's School in Queens Road, Barnet, once again scored among the highest in the country for A-Levels.

Nearly 100 per cent of pupils celebrated A to E grades with 91.7 per cent scoring A to Cs. Some 121 students will be heading to university in September.

Headteacher Dr John Marincowitz said single-sex education was a boon for boys.

"There is nothing more destabalising for boys than girls' giggles. Someone that does well is not likely to continue to do so if they are humiliated and lose confidence," he said.

Matthew Nixson