AMAZING SUCCESS OF IMMIGRANT STUDENT

Ten years ago Hameeda Hussani (then 13) arrived in Peterborough from Afghanistan unable to speak English and having never been to school.

But yesterday evening the 23-year-old former Stanground Academy pupil received a First Class Law Degree at a graduation ceremony at Anglia Ruskin University in front of her proud family.

Hameeda said: “Ever since I was a child I’d wanted to study law, but coming to the UK unable to speak, read or write English I didn’t believe it was possible for me.

“But when you’ve dreamed of doing something for so long, even if it seems impossible, the thought revisits you again and again.

“Not only have I learnt so much about law but also about myself and why it’s so important to challenge yourself and believe in your potential.

“Anybody can go as far as they want to go with the right determination and support.”

Hameeda and sister Rubaba earned money in Afghanistan by weaving carpets, but the family followed dad Abdul Latif to Peterborough after he found work packing salads.

However, life was tough at first and she says she was bullied after joining school in Year Nine.

She said: “First the students did not like me. It took me two years to learn how to speak with them and behave around them. It was really difficult. I was hiding myself and feeling isolated. I wanted nobody to notice me. But now it’s totally different, I have lots of friends.”

Hameeda had no help in learning English but picked it up by observing people and going to school.

And despite being homesick she achieved an A and two Cs at A Level before going to Anglia Ruskin.

She is now studying both a Legal Practice Course and a Masters at London’s City University and aims to get a training contract with a solicitors firm to specialise in property or corporate law.

Hameeda Hussani