Teen mother graduates top of her Bristol University class

Andante Singer said she would wear clothes that made her seem older because she "didn't want to stick out"

A young mum says she wants to shatter stigmas some people hold about teenage mothers after graduating top of her university class.

Andante Singer, from Somerset, fell pregnant at 18 and said: "There is a myth that teenage pregnancy happens to a specific person."

Ms Singer, who studied at the University of Bristol said it "can happen to anyone".

She said labelling teen mums as lazy or irresponsible is harmful.

Ms Singer said she "didn't know what to do" and remembers bursting into tears when she first found out she was pregnant during her A Levels.

Now 23, she said she thought her mum would be angry with her but the first thing she did was give her a hug.

"It's so important to have a support network, having a very supportive family is probably the one thing that got me through", she said.

Ms Singer's son Atticus watched on as she graduated from the University of Bristol

The mother-of-one said for a long time, she would wear clothes that made her seem older because she didn't want to stand out as a teenage mother

Ms Singer, who ended up completing her A-Level exams while four months pregnant with her son Atticus said she had "one view of teen mothers, the one I saw in the media and everywhere else".

"I thought there were two choices; to either not have the baby or to face stigma and struggle," she added.

However Ms Singer, who thought her plans to go to university would be in jeopardy if she had a child, wanted others finding themselves in the same situation they can get support.

She now works as a reading mentor in a school after graduating with the best mark out of her 180 peers and being awarded a British Psychological Society Undergraduate Award

Ms Singer said it was "so important" to have a support network

She said she was not glorifying her situation "because it has been really hard" but wanted to reduce the stigmatisation of teen mothers by showing what she had accomplished.

"I hope that will allow others in my situation to flourish," she said.

Ms Singer said she was able to make the choice to study after receiving a bursary and extra support from the university, which included reduced fees at the university's nursery.

"And I'm so glad I made the decision I did. Atticus is so great and everyone that meets him just loves him," she added.