The disproportionate representation of African Caribbeans in all the negative educational statistics has been well documented. Despite this, there are African Caribbeans who achieve academically but relatively few studies have explored this area. This study aimed to investigate the factors that contribute to African Caribbean academic success, taking into account the factors that contribute to low academic achievement. Questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. Seventy-eight questionnaires were analysed and 38 respondents aged 16 to 40+ years were interviewed. Data is presented for the highest and lowest achieving groups. The findings revealed that most African Caribbeans have negative experiences at school. The difference between those who are successful academically and those who are not depends upon the development of resilience and protective factors that mitigate the negative impact of school. The study suggests that schools, communities and parents need to work much closer together to reduce negative school experiences to ensure the success of African Caribbean pupils. (Contains 1 table and 5 notes.)