A BEWDLEY student has had to spend the last two years balancing her school work, social life and a possible future career.

Bryony Haines, 16, who attends The Bewdley School and Sixth Form Centre, is also a member of Birchfield Harriers Athletics Club and a county level runner.

On top of the training she does to keep dreams of competing at the Olympics alive, she has also been expected by her school to achieve multiple A* and A grades at GCSE.

Bryony said: “It was really hard to balance the training and the studying.

“I had a choice of focusing on either exams and running or exams and social, so I had to give up my social life.

“It was a really hard decision as I had to make my friends understand that my school work and my training are the things that will influence my future, so I had to concentrate on them.”

The choice to focus on her exams and training paid off for Bryony who achieved 12 A*s and A grades.

“I was extremely nervous when I went to collect my results, so much so that I had to get my mum to open them for me,” she said.

“I had doubted myself but that was due to over thinking it. Once I came out of the exams I thought I did alright but the more I thought about it, the more the doubt crept in.

“When I saw the results I achieved I was relieved more than anything, as I do have very high expectations for myself.

“I think that if I would have come below my own expectations, I would have been a bit disappointed in that."

Bryony will now study French, PE, History and Biology at A level in the hope of keeping her dream alive.

She added: “My main career aspiration would be to complete in the Olympics, but if that doesn’t pan out I would definitely want a job in the sporting field.”

Other top performers at The Bewdley School and Sixth Form Centre included Jordanne Palmer, who achieved 10 A* and A grades, Adam Jones, who gained 14 A* and A grades, and Josie Blakiston, who received 9 A* and A grades.

Throughout the rest of the school, 70 per cent of students achieved at least five A* to C passes and 58 per cent of pupils gained five A* to C passes in English language and maths.