AN 11-YEAR-OLD ballet prodigy from a Keighley theatre school has been accepted into a prestigious boarding school specialising in dance.

Lexie Meehan, who started dancing at just three years old, has achieved a scholarship offer for Tring Park performing arts school in Hertfordshire.

It is the same school which helped launch the careers of Dame Julie Andrews, Mamma Mia’s Lily James, X Factor’s Ella Henderson and Star Wars’s Daisy Ridley.

Lexie, who grew up in Wyke, set her hopes on becoming a professional dancer when she turned five years old and signed up to Sara Packham Theatre School in Keighley.

Since Lexie joined Sara’s School she has performed as a Bradford Alhambra sunbeam for five years with big names like Billy Pearce, Lisa Riley, Darren Day and Joe McElderry.

In 2014 Lexie joined in the centenary celebrations for the Bradford Alhambra Theatre and, for one night only, performed alongside Michael Ball, The Krankies, Joe Pasquale and members of Matthew Bourne’s company.

Her mum Lauren Meehan said: “As a family, we are extremely proud of Lexie and amazed how hardworking she is.

“During her Sunbeams days she would have 36 shows to do on top of school, homework as well as travelling up and down the country to audition for boarding schools she wanted to attend.

“As a mother I am proud of all three of my children and we have all had to adapt to Lexie moving to a boarding school over three hours away at the age of just 11.

“It’s been one of the hardest things we have gone through as a family but I’m also unbelievably proud of Lexie’s determination and focus on pursuing her dream.

“We owe a lot of Lexie’s success to her dance teachers they go above and beyond to help and support Lexie and we can’t thank them enough.”

Lexie has already built up a long list of achievements in her dance career so far, having participated in a number of national dance competitions.

In 2019, Lexie earned a place in the final 10 Juniors in the British Ballet Grand Prix. In 2018 she auditioned to train with the Royal Ballet Junior Associates where she trained for one year.

Lexie was offered a music and dance scholarship at The Hammond in Chester and Tring Park School in Hertfordshire where she began training in September 2019.

Since joining Tring Park Lexie has also had the opportunity to perform alongside the professionals at the English National Ballet for The Nutcracker in Liverpool.

Lauren added: “It started when she was three, it was just to give her a hobby and to give her a bit of confidence."