Southampton student who cared for dying grandfather while studying wins university medicine place

A student who pulled out of college after the death of his brother before going on to study again while working as a carer through the pandemic and helping to look after his dying grandfather has won a place to study medicine at university.

Aaran Freemantle from Southampton, achieved Bs in maths and biology and C in physics after studying A-levels at Peter Symonds College in Winchester.

He's secured a place at Southampton University under a scheme to widen participation in medicine.

The 19-year-old described himself as "someone who does what needs to be done" to achieve his goal of being the first in his family to reach university.

He said: "My parents are extremely proud of me, I am the first in my family to go to university. They never went to college, or my two sisters and three brothers."

Mr Freemantle first attended Peter Symonds College in September 2019 but withdrew after four months after the death of his 26-year-old brother Daniel.

He took a job as a care assistant at a home for the elderly and was faced with the challenges of working through the Covid-19 pandemic before he started his studies again in September 2020 while keeping his job in the evenings.

In early 2021, he helped provide care for his grandfather Kenneth at home before he died at the age of 91.

Mr Freemantle said: "It's all a bit of a blur now how I got through it - you just go to college, do your homework, went to work in the evening, went to sleep and repeat. You just get on and do it.

"I'm not a motivated person but someone who does what needs to be done."

Mr Freemantle said he was "insanely excited" to be going to university and added: "I have had everything to face but I did it, that's the main thing."