A Telford school student is hoping to pay back the faith shown by her school’s head of sixth form by taking part in the Prudential RideLondon.

Jameela Hussain, who now studies at Abraham Darby Academy, has been living independently since she was 16 after relationships at home and in foster care broke down.

But, despite not having the grades required, she was given a chance to study by Neil Robins, and is now looking forward to her next challenge by taking part in the Prudential RideLondon – riding through the streets of Surrey and the capital.

The 17-year-old will be among thousands taking to the start line for the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 46, riding 46 miles in the world’s biggest cycling festival, taking in the iconic sights on completely traffic-free roads on July 30.

Hussain was also at the regional launch of the 2017 PruGOals programme in Birmingham, where she was joined by double Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes, and left in awe at meeting a gold medallist while ready to take on a completely new challenge on the bike.

“At 16 I had to learn how to do all the things adults do, paying bills and doing washing and things like that, but that’s given me a lot of confidence and hopefully RideLondon can help make me a better person,” she said.

“Mr Robins took a bit of a gamble taking me into sixth form, but I’ve been working hard to show him that I can do it, my grades are getting better and I’m making more progress as the months go on.

“He inspires me and makes me want to do well.

“I signed up for Prudential RideLondon to give myself some resilience, knowing it would take a lot of hard work and determination, and as a challenge for myself.

“It was great to meet Kelly Holmes, she was very enthusiastic and made me want to carry on training, keep pushing myself to work harder and do better. She was teaching us about staying focused on the task and working to what you want to get by dreaming big.”

Double Olympic gold medallist Holmes took part in the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 46 on its maiden ride last year, and has now joined forces with Prudential and education charity Teach First.

Their initiative will see 260 students and 40 teachers provided with bikes, equipment, training and nutrition advice as part of the PruGOals programme, boosting the wellbeing and employability skills of young people.

The aim is to also encourage young adults to set their own goals, helping them to achieve what they thought might not have been possible.

For Holmes, whose success came at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games, the importance of setting goals is not something that can be underestimated at any level.

She said: “My role is to give an insight from making the transition from a runner to a cyclist and I’m hoping I can pass on my experiences as an ex-international athlete, as well as somebody who has worked with young people.

“They need a focal point in which to believe in themselves, to set themselves ambitious goals and then go and achieve them, and that’s something we want to do as part of the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 46.

“It’s so important to show young people there are opportunities for everyone, no matter what their background is, to give them the opportunity to make changes in themselves and feel like they can achieve.

“You have to set yourself goals and then believe you can achieve it. Once you do that then it feels amazing, and that’s what I felt after taking part last year.”

Dame Kelly Holmes was speaking at the regional launch of PruGOals, a partnership between Prudential and Teach First which aims to empower young people to drive their ambitions and fulfil their potential regardless of social or economic background. For more information, visit www.prugoals.co.uk/prugoals