SOPHIE Kirkby will celebrate her 16th birthday this Sunday and she has received an early present in the form of excellent GCSE results.

Bury resident Sophie was predicted all grade 5s and was unsure how she would fare on results day.

“I was really nervous before getting the results,” the 15-year-old explained. “I had stomach pains from not knowing how I’d done.”

However, her doubts proved unfounded and Sophie went on to achieve grade 8s in combined sciences, geography, religion, and design technology. She also secured a grade 7 in maths, and grade 6s in English literature and English language.

Those results have cemented Sophie’s plans to tackle A-levels in biology, chemistry and philosophy, and she has taken heart from her superb results in similar subjects.

“I did better than I thought I would do,” she said. "I'm happy now they are over. My family is over the moon."

Sophie juggled her schoolwork around several extra-curricular activities, including a lifeguarding course and swimming for the Bury and Elton Amateur Swimming Club team.

Asked if she was planning to celebrate her impressive grades, Sophie suggested that she would instead wait for “one big celebration at the weekend,” when she turns 16.