EXCEPTIONAL student successes were celebrated at Alton College’s annual outstanding awards presentation event.

The awards are given for a range of achievements from academic to friendship and leadership.

The ceremony was held on campus and attended by the recipients and their parents, with the awards presented by college principal Jane Machell, sponsors and governors.

One set of awards, the Governors’ Awards for Outstanding Achievement, are given to students who have either achieved high grades at the end of their course, demonstrated outstanding personal development, or have enhanced the reputation of the college.

This year, they were awarded to Celine Chen (formerly of Fuxing Senior School, Shanghai), Rebecca Nicholson (formerly Treloar College), Elizabeth Eyers (Woking High School), Lara Heitsch (The Petersfield School) and Harry Coloe (Salesian College, Farnborough).

The Alton College Award for Leadership, presented to a student who has demonstrated outstanding leadership, was awarded to BTEC public services student Michael Penn (Farnham Heath End School).

Thomas Bason (Ditcham Park School) was presented with the Ian Buchan Friendship Award, an award set up by the parents of Ian Buchan in his memory to give to a student who has been a particularly good friend to another student.

The SHG Mediation Services Award for Excellence in the Arts was won by music student Freddie Hodkin, (Eggar’s School), The Harry Marshall Film Award went to Alex Talberg, (Eggar’s School).

The Erin Shee Award, presented to a student for recognition of their contribution to sport enrichment, was won by Primrose Kavanagh (Eggar’s School.) The Joke Elson Award is in memory of its namesake, a teacher who championed adult basic skills at the college. This year it was awarded to Will Bellamy (Robert May’s School, Odiham).

The final award was the Harvard Book Prize, presented to the student who was considered to be “an outstanding student, academically excellent, with exceptional personal qualities, who makes a significant contribution to the college” and this went to Isabella Chalmers-Arnold (previously of Perins School, Alresford).