Nominees 'all talented and caring'

TOP marks . . . Georgia Sutton-Cross, a former pupil at the GM UTC, is a finalist in the British Education Awards

A HIGH-ACHIEVING Oldham student is a finalist in the inaugural British Education Awards.

Georgia Sutton-Cross, from Springhead, achieved top marks in her BTEC level 3 engineering course at The GM University Technical College in Middleton Road, Oldham, where she was the only girl in her class.

The awards ceremony on Monday will honour students from across the United Kingdom for exemplary academic and extracurricular achievement.

Georgia, a former Pride in Oldham nominee and Saddleworth Young Volunteer of the Year winner, is one of four candidates shortlisted in the vocational category for the north of England. The 18-year-old is preparing to do a BTEC level 3 science course at Oldham College and hopes to study biomedical engineering at university, before working in prosthetic engineering. A karate black belt, she is planning to run classes in Oldham.

Georgia recently shaved her hair off to raise around £1,000 for the Little Princess Trust, which provides real-hair wigs for children with cancer, and she is currently working as a door-to-door fundraiser.

The former Hulme Grammar School pupil has also raised hundreds of pounds for the Alzheimer's Society and Dr Kershaw's Hospice, and volunteered at the RSPCA charity shop in Lees.

She is delighted at her nomination and said: "I didn't expect it at all. I really enjoyed studying at The GM. The teachers know what they are talking about and it is a really good environment, especially with the support you receive."

The British Education Awards have been organised by Amin Babor Chowdhury from Oldham, editor of the Probash Bangla newspaper and organiser of the annual Oldham Education Awards.

Monday's ceremony will be at the the Grand Connaught Rooms, in London, and a total of 67 students have been shortlisted in several categories.

Exceptional

Mr Chowdhury said: "Education has the power to change lives and in Britain there are so many ways to access it, if we choose to. This is reflected in our nominees, some of whom have overcome real adversity and personal hardship to gain their hard-earned academic rewards."

"All of our finalists have shown an exceptional level of commitment and focus to advance through learning and ensure they have the best opportunities in life.

"They are an example of what can be achieved, not just in terms of academic success, but as talented individuals and caring, responsible citizens. We are fortunate to have such remarkable people, as these finalists are, to contribute to and help shape our society."