Teenager with seven A levels is 'beyond gifted'

2:16pm Wednesday 22nd August 2007

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A TEENAGER who chalked up seven A grades at A level has been described as "beyond gifted" by his school.

Luke Bramwell gained the top level grade in all of his subjects, making him the first Bacup and Rawtenstall Grammar School (BRGS) student to achieve such a stunning result, and one of only a handful in the country this year.

What makes 18-year-old Luke's accomplishment perhaps even more impressive is that the subjects he took span a wide range - art and design, critical thinking, English literature, general studies, maths, further maths and physics.

Luke, who will start a degree in engineering at Cambridge in September, said: "I had a wide range of interests and decided to pursue them all. My original plan was to drop English literature after doing it at AS level, but I was really enjoying so decided to carry on with it.

"Also, my original plan was to study architecture which requires a very broad range of subjects.

"I think some people were worried that I had bitten off more than I could chew, but I genuinely never felt under too much pressure, and it didn't mean I had no social life either, I still went out and enjoyed myself as I think that's important too.

"I know seven A levels sounds ridiculous but I can honestly say it didn't feel like too much because I didn't have any resits.

"I did have a fuller timetable than everyone else, but it meant that I worked all day and could then have some time off in the evenings.

Luke, who lives in Rochdale, also found time to practice with the band he plays keyboard in, Tom Hyatt and the Firebrats. The other members, Tom Hyatt, of Rawtenstall, John Waller, of Burnley, and Dean Leyland, of Ramsbottom, all 18, are all also BRGS students, and Tom was not far behind his bandmate, gaining six A grades at A level, and one at AS level.

Luke added: "I'm also very grateful to my great teachers, and my parents - I was lucky in that I didn't have to get a part time job, I wouldn't have been able to take seven subjects if I had that commitment."

Dr Andrew Edwards, deputy head of the Waterfoot school, said: "Luke has always been extremely promising all through school, and his exams taken early on in the courses showed he was likely to get A grades.

"He went with the subjects which interested him, and he was also friendly in a group of students who all did extremely well.

"As a student, he's beyond gifted - not only is he academically very bright, he's a mature, balanced lad who's very popular student with both his peers and staff.

"We're absolutely delighted for him."

A spokesperson for AQA, the UK's biggest exam board, said: "We do not collate exact figures, but this sort of achievement is nothing short of remarkable, that only a handful of students have attained."