Former head boy Thomas Hudson was top of the class when he achieved the highest mark worldwide in his recent accountancy exam.

Thomas, who attended Dame Allan’s for 10 years until 2012, scored 97 per cent in the ACA professional level Business Planning: Insurance exam, the highest mark recorded with students in countries such as Malaysia, Singapore and Cyprus also sitting the paper.

After leaving Dame Allan’s, Tom went on to study economics at the London College for Economics and Political Science and he has remained in the capital working as an auditor for PricewaterhouseCoopers.

To fully qualify as a chartered accountant, he will go on to sit his advanced exams in November.

Tom said: “I was pretty shocked when I found out I had the highest mark, but over the moon too. In fact, I think I was more relieved just to have passed!”

Tom will receive his prize from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) president Nick Parker at an awards ceremony in London in April.

ICAEW Executive Director of Learning and Professional Development, Mark Protherough, said: “I would like to offer my congratulations to all our ACA students, and especially the prize winners who have surpassed themselves with their exam results in January.

“These individuals are carving their way into the business world and the latest results show a promising future for all students. I would like to wish all students the best of luck in their future careers.”