Ballerina Sophie-Leigh Sill has danced her last lesson with her Whitehaven classmates as she heads for the prestigious Royal Ballet School.

The 11-year-old is one of only 12 youngsters in the UK to be accepted into the prestigious Royal Ballet School from hundreds of candidates.

She starts the school next Monday and will split her day between ballet and traditional academic subjects.

Sophie-Leigh has been a long-time student of Whitehaven dance teacher, Karen Starkey.

Karen said at the last class: "I just gave her the good news of a distinction with 95 marks in her grade 5 ballet exam, her last one with me!

"The examiner also invited her to the IDTA scholarship awards competition in February 2017 - the event is by invitation only to the high achievers within the International Dance Teachers Association examination syllabus.''