THE mother of a girl born weighing just one pound six ounces said she is "the proudest mum ever", to see her daughter go to at secondary school.

Hannah Martin weighed less than a bag of sugar when she was born 12 weeks premature by caesarean section, and has tackled adversity throughout her life.

Samantha, Hannah's mother, said her daughter had fully enjoyed her time at Knavesmire School, and was keen to start a new stage of her life at Millthorpe School this week.

Samantha, of South Bank, said: "She absolutely loved her first day, on Tuesday, she came out of there smiling and had no fears of going the day before, which made my day. Nothing fazes her. To get to where she is I think it's an amazing achievement.

"She had a hell of a fight on her hands from the first six months and doctors told me we needed a miracle for her to survive. She fought and fought to get here today, She's a very determined child."

In recent years, Hannah's interests have included sports which her mother could not have expected during long nights at York Hospital in the months after Hannah was born, and studied kickboxing when she was just eight years old.

Samantha said: "She's given up kickboxing, but started horse riding now, and taken to that like a duck to water.

"I went to the hospital the other day to se my sister and met the doctor who delivered Hannah. He's due to retire in a few weeks, and I showed him a photo of her and he was blown away."

Samantha thanked Millthorpe and Knavesmire schools for their help with Hannah - who turns 12 this month, and still has a weak immune system and visual and hearing impairments - as well as the Special Care Baby Unit at York Hospital.

She said: "I'm very proud.

"She's just come on leaps and bounds. I must be the proudest mum ever."