A Sixth Former from St Albans has won a silver medal in an international science competition.

Thomas Hillman from St Albans School was given the award at the International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics (IOAA), which was held in Beijing.

He was selected to represent the UK team following an astrophysics competition held in Oxford.

In June, Thomas was also selected as one of six mathematicians to represent the UK at the International Mathematical Olympiad in Romania, a worldwide competition for pre-university maths students, and was awarded another silver medal for his individual performance.

Thomas said: “It was an honour to be part of such an amazing team and have the opportunity to represent the UK at the IOAA.”

St Albans School headmaster Jonathan Gillespie praised Thomas’s performance as “simply outstanding”.