A GIFTED dancer with a natural talent for ballet has landed a spot at one of the country’s most prestigious dance schools.

Caitlin Pearson, 18, of Clacton, only started ballet dancing when she was 13 years old when she joined Clacton Dance Foundation.

But she did not let her late start hold her back and has risen to become one of the Clacton school’s top dancers.

Graceful Caitlin has now clinched a place at the prestigious Royal Academy of Dance in London, where she will hone her skills on a three year course.

She said: “I was really late starting but it just made me more determined. To start with I was in classes with much younger girls.

“It’s been a lot of hard work but I love pushing myself harder and getting better all the time. I’m so excited to get started, it will be amazing.”

Caitlin is the seventh Clacton Dance Foundation student to secure a place at the top academy since 2004.