Tears of joy as student overcomes tragedy to succeed

Sophie Hennessey was left with life-threatening injuries in 2008 when she was hit by a car which killed her sister Megan, who was 11 at the time, on their way to their grandparents from Trinity Academy in Thorne.

The car was being driven by her cousin Nathan who was jailed.

She made an amazing recovery to achieve success in her GCSEs after spending four months in hospital and has now picked up two As and a B at A-level. The 18-year-old will now go to Newcastle University to study English.

She said: “I wasn’t that confident and have tried not to think about going to Newcastle University because I didn’t want to get my hopes up. I don’t think I would have got such good results if it wasn’t for my school and my friends. I am sure Megan would have been trying to come to Newcastle with me as well.”

She got As in economics and English, a B in history and a C in AS chemistry.

Her father, Andrew, said: “I am the proudest dad in the country. Sophie has done amazingly well. I had a bit of a cry this morning but they were tears of joy.”

Academy principal Ian Brew said: “As we celebrate with our students I am overjoyed that among our top performers is Sophie Hennessey. Hers is a remarkable performance given the tragic incident that happened nearly three years ago when Megan was killed.

“We are a close family at Trinity Academy and the loss of Megan devastated everyone here. She is greatly missed and we will always remember her as a lovely, bright girl.

“Sophie suffered terrible injuries that still affect her today. She has made a truly amazing recovery against all the odds and medical opinion.

“The determination and strength of character she has shown in order to achieve this success is an example to us all.”