More than 100 pupils at Brampton Manor Academy are celebrating straight A* and A grades this morning - and the entire year group have secured university places.

The school, in Roman Road, East Ham, tweeted that the grades were “record breaking”, adding: “Our 2018 students have worked extremely hard and achieved the school’s best ever A-level results. Well done to our amazing students!”

Among those to get a clean sweep of the top grades was Ali Anis, who will celebrate his 18th birthday next week. He bagged three A*s in biology, chemistry and maths, and will now be off to Oxford to study medicine.

“I was shocked,” he said, “I told my parents and they didn’t believe me at first. A lot of hard work paid off.”

Natanim Fekadu, 18, secured a place at Cambridge to study history and politics after achieving A*A*A in English, religious studies and history.

“It’s not even real,” she said, “I can’t believe it, I didn’t think I’d be able to do this. My parents are on holiday in Ethiopia, so I can’t even tell them yet.”

For Fahim Ahmed, 18, three A*s weren’t enough - he managed to achieve four!
The teenager, from East Ham, will now be heading to Cambridge to study chemical engineering.

For friends Kevin Jaku and Ziggy Zubkus, both 18, today was a joint success. They both achieved three A*s in maths, further maths and economics, and will be studying maths at Imperial College London and Durham respectively. The teens from Dagenham have been friends for years, having met at All Saints RC Secondary School.

“It’s great – we both went to the same secondary school, both got the same grades at AS-level, and now we’ve got the same A-levels,” Ziggy said.

Principal Dr Dayo Olukoshi said: “The teachers weren’t shocked because we’ve got really hardworking students here, we have got incredibly committed teachers as well.

They don’t see themselves as teachers, they see themselves as missionaries. They want to help students become successes and overcome disadvantage.

Almost 90 per cent of the students here are going to Russell group unis and to have students going to Oxford and Cambridge is unbelievable.”

The school saw 93pc of grades at A*-B and 99pc at A*-C.

​Source : Newham Recorder, 16 August 2018

92% of all people never achieve their goals in life: They often find themselves distracted, misguided, unmotivated, counter-strategic and overwhelmed - Dr Boyce Watkins

Those who are successful in life have three things in common: focus, persistence and patience. They simply do not quit chasing their big goals.

Putting this into context: Last week I read a news story written by Christian Simpson that was positive, uplifting and inspiring. Yeah, I know - a modern day miracle. It was about an exceptional champion from Birmingham, Alabama, called Walter Carr.

''Last week, Walter was due to start a new job with a house removal company. The night before his first day in the job, his car broke down. Now, for the vast majority of people, that would have been the end of it. They would have resigned themselves to their "fate", and allowed the conditions and circumstances to dictate their present and future. They would have phoned their new employee the next morning to explain why they would not arrive.

Not Walter. Oh no. This young man walked ALL NIGHT through the suburbs of Birmingham to where he needed to be - TWENTY miles away.

During his long journey, a police officer from the local Pelham police force pulled over to enquire what he was doing walking the streets, alone, in the early hours.

Impressed after checking out the young man's story, the officer took him for breakfast before, on Walter's insistence, he drove him to the house of Jenny Lamey, a customer of the removal company who was expecting to move home with their service that day.

When she opened the front door, the police officer explained he had picked up this "nice kid" in Pelham, and the "nice kid" (aka Walter) explained to Ms. Lamey he was supposed to help her move that day.

She offered him time to rest before the rest of the crew arrived, but Walter declined and got straight to work. Later, according to Ms. Lamey, when helping in her kitchen, he revealed how as a young boy his family had to move to Houston, Texas after their home in New Orleans was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.

"I just can't tell you how touched I was by Walter and his journey", she wrote on her Facebook page.

"I can't imagine how many times on that lonely walk...in the middle of the night…did he want to turn back. How many times did he wonder if this was the best idea. But he walked until he got here! I am in totally in awe of this young man!" she proclaimed.

When interviewed by reporters, Walter Carr said: "This was the first job in a long time to give me an opportunity to get hired. I wanted to show them I got the dedication. I said I'm going to get this job done one way or another".

He then added: "I want people to know this - no matter what the challenge is, you can break through the challenge. Nothing is impossible unless you make it possible".

What a superstar. What a phenomenal attitude for a young man to have. I wish I knew him. Heck, I wish I had the guy on my team!

Mark my words, Walter Carr is going to be something. He's Elite in his consciousness. I understand he graduates in December from college after studying health sciences, and plans to join the US marines before returning to Birmingham to study physical therapy.

He'll knock it out of the park.  When a winner's mentality is met with a winner's ambition, nothing can keep that winner from winning. It's a lawful process. Life brings to you what you bring to life.

The story's not over yet.

So moved were the public by Walter's dedication, an online campaign raised more than $8000 to get his car fixed before it was closed. It then reopened and by last week had raised more that $50,000. And it didn't end there either.

In an act of great leadership after hearing Walter's story, Luke Marklin, the Chief Executive of Bellhops (the removal company Walter had just joined) immediately drove from Tennessee to meet his new employee.

After chatting over a cup of coffee, Mr. Marklin handed Walter the keys to his own 2014 Ford Escape.

An emotional Walter looked in astonishment, and, tearing up, asked: "Seriously?" before hugging Mr. Marklin once he confirmed his offer was genuine.

The Chief Executive told reporters "I am honestly blown away by him. Everything he did that day is exactly who we are - heart and grit".

Ms. Lamey, the customer Walter had served that morning, was present as he received his gift. She told him: "You've changed all of our lives Walter. You have no idea how many lives you've changed and inspired. You're a very special young man and you're going to do great things. You already are."

Ain't that the truth. We could all learn a lesson or six from "Walter the champion"…and that's why I couldn't keep his story to myself."

Charles Stanley is delighted to announce that Tsitsi Mutiti won the Rising Star of the Year award at the 2018 Women in Finance Awards. 

The Women in Finance Awards is Europe’s largest diversity initiative, recognising the high-achievers, advocates, and role models for women in the sector. The awards are a celebration of  the individuals and organisations leading change, breaking down barriers, and creating new possibilities for equal representation in the world of finance.

Tsitsi began her career at Charles Stanley in 2007. Initially in an investment support role, Tsitsi progressed to an Investment Advisor position in 2012, before qualifying as an Investment Manager in 2016. Tsitsi holds the CISI Level 7  Masters in Wealth Management, a specialist qualification which encompasses the breadth of knowledge needed to provide the highest quality service to clients. She is also a member of the Editorial Panel for the CISI magazine, The Review. In addition to her work as an Investment Manager, Tsitsi is also a founding member of Charles Stanley’s Innovation through Inclusion group. Made up of a variety of individuals at all levels of seniority, the group design and implement initiatives to support Charles Stanley’s diversity agenda and foster a workplace which is both diverse and inclusive.

Commenting on the awards, Head of Investment Management at Charles Stanley Gary Teper said ‘On behalf of all at Charles Stanley, I would like to congratulate Tsitsi, a deserving winner of the Rising Star award. As well as being an incredibly talented Investment Manager, Tsitsi exemplifies the values we strive to demonstrate at Charles Stanley of being caring, fair and progressive.’

Gary added, ‘On a more general note, whilst the awards are an excellent forum for celebrating the achievements of some of the women working in finance today, as a sector we can and must do more to support diversity and inclusion in our industry. Charles Stanley, along with other signatories of the government-led Women in Finance Charter, is committed to taking proactive action to encourage gender balance at all levels across financial services.’ 

Source : ​https://www.charles-stanley.co.uk/group/news-and-events/women-finance-awards-tsitsi-mutiti

​Most of us don’t have the luxury of running away or hiding from our obstacles because WE have something very specific we’re trying to do. No one is coming to save us! The obstacles won’t un-obstacle themselves. And if want to go where we say we want to go - to accomplish our  goals - there is only one way, and that’s to meet our obstacles and challenges with resilience. 

Resilience is having the ability to bounce back when things don't go as planned. ''It is the trait of resiliency above all others, that makes you a winner'' - Denis Waitley. 

Resilience is the strength and speed of our response to adversity. It’s a skillset we develop over the course of our lives, and there are concrete steps we can take to build resilience long before we face any kind of difficulty. When I think of the word resilience I often reflect on the enduring spirit of the Windrush Generation and our history of overcoming adversity.

Growing up, one of the things that struck me was the way these pioneers were able to build strong communities, work together and take themselves on against the odds. They had so little resources but managed to accomplish great things. We all heard the stories about the infamous “No Blacks, No Irish, No Dogs” notices in terms of housing. The true grit of the Windrush generation shone through that.

They bought houses and then rented rooms to each other to remove the barriers they faced. Our elders were turned away from churches – so what did they do? Church was at the centre of their communities in the Caribbean, and they started prayer meetings in the living rooms of their homes, then moved into school halls and community centres.

It is clear that the story of the Windrush generation's resilience must be shared, appreciated, celebrated, taught and used as a tool of empowerment for all. They have illustrated the creativity, understanding, strength, and courage of a people who have not only been able to endure, but have strived and created success under extremely difficult conditions.

We need to share their stories to inspire the next generation: that they become aware of our history and the significant contribution of our elders, who were such leaders and pioneers.