WHEN Tony Doyle was made redundant, he had to rethink his future.

The budding solicitor’s qualifications earned at school 15 years ago were outdated.

To make matters more complicated, Mr Doyle, 33, of Oakwood Avenue, West Mersea, is also a professional cyclist who has won medals at transplant games, after having both lungs replaced.

But his career is back on track, thanks to Access to Higher Education, a course at Colchester Institute to help adults on to university courses.

Mr Doyle studied at the Colchester campus for nine months and is about to start a three-year law degree at Essex University.

He was a legal consultant, but was made redundant 18 months ago.

Mr Doyle admitted the idea of trying to get into university as a mature student was daunting.

He said: “All the qualifications I gained as a teenager at college were no longer valid.

“At that time, I didn’t have the drive to go to university, preferring to go straight into work.

“The Access course was the logical step once I had decided to go to university and eventually qualify as a solicitor.

“I did have a lot of outside commitments, through being a professional cyclist.

“But I attended the course about three-and-a-half days a week and managed to fit it all in.”

Mr Doyle is one of more than 100 students who have enrolled on the course in recent years.

Linda White has gone on to qualify as a midwife.

She said: “When I left school without the necessary qualifications, I thought I would never fulfil my dream of becoming a midwife.

“I was working in menial, part-time jobs, desperately hoping for a better opportunity to come along.

“A friend told me about the course at Colchester Institute. I was accepted and immediately found my fellow students friendly and supportive.

“The work was hard because I hadn’t written anything since leaving school.

“But my tutors were very patient and helped me understand the complicated areas.

“My confidence and self-esteem grew every day.”

Mrs White graduated with a 2.1 degree and is working full-time as a midwife.

Former and current students met to celebrate 25 years of the Access course.

Sally Wilcox, curriculum manager for the course, said the students, aged from 19 to 70, were dedicated and determined to pursue their dreams, despite having other commitments.

She said: “We have people enrolling who left school without qualifications, but want to get into higher education.

“The majority are in their thirties and may have children and are working in unskilled jobs, but want to find a new vocation.

“They are all very dedicated and put a lot of hard work into their studies.

“Many go on to be very successful and they are all highly-motivated and keen to do well.

“I think the main thing the course gives people is confidence.”

The course is one of the largest in Essex and Suffolk.

It is run from Colchester Institute’s sites in Sheepen Road, Colchester, and at Braintree College, where students can focus on physics, chemistry and biology.

For more information, visit accesstohe.ac.uk