Laura Hudson, aged 23, from Shrewsbury
After doing well at school, Laura discovered climbing. Laura said: “I was determined to become a professional rock climber. I lost interest in studying hard as I was climbing full time.
“Although I did get pretty good it was after a couple of years of doing nothing but climbing that I decided I had had enough of not stretching my brain and decided that returning to study would be the ideal solution.”
With a strong interest in animals and their welfare, Laura decided to revisit her lifelong ambition to become a vet. “I signed up for an Access Science programme at Telford College of Arts and Technology which has enabled me to secure offers to read veterinary medicine at two universities; Liverpool and Cambridge.”
Laura’s tutor Simon Hoyle, who nominated her for the award, said: “With Laura’s educational background, entry into a career as a vet was simply not credible. However, the OCN accredited Access course engaged her in learning again. It has raised her self confidence, developed her time management and coping skills and given her the opportunity to enter a career, and a university, usually considered only accessible to those with the highest traditional qualifications.”
Karan Green, Chief Executive of the National Open College Network, said that Laura was an inspiration to adult learners everywhere. “Over the last 25 years, the Open College Network has helped transform the lives of tens of thousands of people across the UK whose skills might otherwise not have been recognised.
“Like them, Laura understood that learning could lead the way to a better life and has had the focus and determination to seize the opportunities available to her. She is a very deserving winner of the Adult Learners Week Open College Network 25th Anniversary Award 2007.”