THE head girl of Bolton Muslim Girls' School said going in to collect her results 'was like coming home'.

Aliyah Patel, aged 16, was all smiles as she found out she was awarded two 8s, one 9, six A*s and three As.

She said: "I have been here for five years and when I came back here it was like coming home.

"We are not the biggest school, there are only 500 of us, but they are the best for us. The teachers work so hard for us.

"I would recommend this school to anyone. We have had so much help, they are always there for us."

Aliyah will be going to college to study Maths, Biology, Chemistry and History.

Deputy head teacher Helen Andiyapan said she was pleased with how the pupils had performed this year.

She said: "We are so pleased. All the hard work that the girls and the staff have put in to prepare for the day has come off.

"We were quite nervous with the new specifications and we did not really know what we were dealing with. But the staff are very committed at this school."

She was particularly impressed with grades in English literature and language, Arabic and science.