Schoolgirl tipped for Oxbridge hangs herself days before sitting 15 exams
A GIRL tipped for a place at Oxford or Cambridge hanged herself in her back garden after feeling daunted that she was due to sit 15 exams, an inquest heard.
Lisa Wilks, 17, was to sit the exams, including six A-levels, in different subjects and dreamed of becoming a scientist.
But in May, days before the tests, she was found dead by her father Derek, 46, at her family home in Thornton-Cleveleys, Blackpool.
Lisa was at Blackpool Sixth Form College doing chemistry, biology, maths statistics, psychology, religious education and general studies.
She was placed in a class of highly intelligent students tipped for Oxbridge universities and had ambitions of a career in genetic research or as a biology teacher.
Her mother Christine, 55, said after the inquest: “There was a lot of pressure on Lisa and we think it got too much for her.”
She said in the weeks before her death, Lisa wanted out of college and vowed to hang herself.
There was a lot of pressure on Lisa and we think it got too much for her
Mrs Wilks, a former librarian, said: “The 15 exams were her biggest worry.
“She didn’t want to do it.”
Felicity Greeves, principal of Blackpool College, said: “Lisa immediately showed herself to be a gifted and conscientious student. We have an excellent record of providing pastoral support.
“We ask students to let us know if they need support.
“Tragically in Lisa’s case, there was no indication she was having any difficulties.”
Recording a verdict of suicide, Blackpool coroner Alan Wilson said Lisa had reached a point where she “felt pressured into doing quite a number of A-levels”.
But he added: “There is a lack of evidence to suggest that the issue in relation to exams was probably a causative feature.”
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