GOING back to school can be very daunting especially if you haven't been in a classroom for more than 20 years.

But 50 people aged between 21 and 55 have been getting to grips with student life as they prepare to go on to university.

They have all just completed an access course at Swindon College that helps mature students back into education.

The course is a way for students who have not followed the traditional A-Level route to gain a place at university.

Swindon College offers a range of courses, including science, nursing and social work.

Tracey Thompson is one of the students who will be heading to university in the autumn.

She married her childhood sweetheart at 19 and moved to Germany with no qualifications.

In September she will start the foundation youth degree at the University of Bath in Swindon.

"When I left school I didn't really think about going any further with my education so I trained as a hairdresser, but I hated it," said Tracey, 38, who lives in Old Town.

"Then I got married to a soldier and we moved out to Germany for 10 years.

"While I was there I started working with children who had special needs."

"I really enjoyed the work but my parents were both ill so I came back to the UK with my children."

Tracey is mum to five children Elouise, 19, Perrie, 18, Ashleigh, 16, Alexander, 15, and Charlie, 10 so life will be busy when she starts her university course.

But she says the benefits of returning to education make it all worthwhile.

"I had always thought I'd like to work with young people in some way but I didn't really have the confidence," she said.

"Then I saw the access course advertised and I thought I should just give it a try.

"On my first day it was really daunting walking into the college.

"I didn't know what to expect or what everyone would be like.

"We spent the first day getting to know each other and were paired up with a study partner."

Tracey originally signed up for the part-time course but it didn't take long before she took on full-time hours.

She managed to complete the course within a year.

"It has been hard going and juggling college, homework and looking after the children hasn't been easy but once I got my head around it all I managed.

"The children, especially the older ones, have been really supportive."

Elouise has been so impressed with her mum's efforts that she is now planning to start an access course to nursing in September.

Mark Cameron, 44, of Penhill, is gearing up to go to the University of Bath to study chemistry.

"I worked in printing for 20 years and was made redundant," he said.

"Now I'm planning to become a teacher and if I hadn't have been made redundant I wouldn't have actually found something I like doing."

On Tuesday night all of the students gathered at the college for their end-of-year award ceremony.