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Refugee hopes to help others after A-level success

Evie Lake,
Emy Mooreand
Philippa Goymer,North East and Cumbria
News imageEnglish Martyrs Catholic School Anastasiia Sochka smiling into the camera. She has long, light brown hair which is parted down the middle. She is wearing a black hoodie which is open at the front and a brown top with the Adidas logo on it. She is wearing a black lanyard with white writing on it. Sochka is standing in front of a beige brick building with a rectangular window.English Martyrs Catholic School
Anastasiia Sochka arrived in north-east England from Ukraine in 2022

A Ukrainian refugee has said she wants to work towards a career helping people back in her home country after getting into university.

Anastasiia Sochka came to Hartlepool with her mum, Victoria, in summer 2022 while her dad, Andrew, stayed back to fight in the Ukrainian army.

"It was nice to be able to give him that good news because I wanted to make him happy," Sochka said. "I miss him a lot."

Meanwhile, the gap between the number of students getting top A-level grades in north-east England and London has grown to another record level.

Sochka, who achieved A*, A, B at English Martyrs Catholic School, in Hartlepool, will now attend Newcastle University and hopes to become a social worker.

"Lots of people are struggling in Ukraine now because of poverty due to the war, and I want to be able to help them," she said.

"Seeing what's happened has influenced me and changed my life perspective.

"I hope that by the time I graduate, the war will be over."

News imageEmy Moore/BBC Adam Thomas Clark smiling into the camera while holding up a folded A4 sheet of paper with his results on which cannot be made out. He has brown, curly hair which is shaved on the sides. He is wearing a black t-shirt and a long necklace and rings on both hands. There is a group of people standing behind him talking in smaller groups. They are in a modern looking room with white walls.Emy Moore/BBC
Adam Thomas Clark said he was not expecting to get the grades he did

Almost a third of students in London were awarded A or A* (32.7%), which compares with only 23.1% in the North East.

The 9.6% gap is the highest since the current system of grading began in 2010, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

But at Newcastle Sixth Form College, a large portion of students were celebrating their grades.

Adam Thomas Clark said he was "really, really happy" with his results.

"I didn't expect the grades at all and it was just brilliant," he said.

Now off to do chemistry at Newcastle University, he said: "I'm going to be out celebrating a lot, it's going to be so good."

News imagePhilippa Goymer/BBC Keira Gawthorpe smiling into the camera alongside her family. She is wearing a white patterned headscarf and a matching white and purple floral dress. She has what looks like a cannula or another medical device on her chest which is just about visible. Her dad is to the right and is bald with a dark and grey beard. He is wearing a black polo shirt with an orange logo. In front of him is a young boy with blonde, short hair. He is wearing a white and blue England football shirt. Gawthorpe's mum is on the right has has long, brown hair and is wearing a purple vest top. She is looking to the right and looks like she has been crying.Philippa Goymer/BBC
Keira Gawthrope (left) said she was happy with her result despite a disrupted year

At Middlesbrough College, Keria Gawthorpe,18, was diagnosed with leukemia just as she was about to start college two years ago.

She was able to start college officially in September 2025, but relapsed again in June.

Collecting her first year results for her childcare T-level, she said received an A*.

"I'm very happy about it," Gawthrope said.

Additional reporting from Daniel Holland, Local Democracy Reporting Service

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