A TEENAGER who swapped her native Latvia for life in the Potteries gained four A-levels today.

Ramona Alksne moved to Stoke-on-Trent two years ago after mother Ieva, who is a ceramic artist, found out about the city on the internet.

They initially spent a year in London, where Ramona, pictured, took GCSEs from scratch.

But with Ieva's pottery connections, the family thought it would be nice to relocate to Staffordshire.

Ramona, who lives in Tunstall, has just completed A-levels in art and design, media studies, maths, and English, after studying at Stoke-on-Trent Sixth Form College. The 18-year-old now intends to stay in the area and take a degree in film production at Staffordshire University.

Ramona said: "I've loved doing A-levels here.

"While I've been at college, I have also been a student VIP and a peer mentor."

The student could already speak English when she arrived in Britain because the language is taught in Latvian schools from an early age.

"My auntie and cousin moved to this country first because they wanted to experience a British education.

"My mum visited and really liked it," said Ramona.

She has found some distinct differences between the Baltic and British approaches to learning, adding: "It's more strict in Latvia and you also do more subjects.

"I did 15 subjects at school there."

Ramona's mother has also settled well in Stoke-on-Trent. After a stint working at Dudson's, she landed a job at Burslem Art Gallery and also still produces ceramics.

Ieva said: "When I found out there was a place called the Potteries, my reaction was one of excitement. Stoke-on-Trent is very interesting."