York College's Haroon Ahmadzai was named ESOL (English for speakers of other languages) 'Student of the Year' at York College and University centre’s REACH Awards ceremony.
Aged 14, Haroon was told by his mother to leave their home country as quickly as possible after the Taliban had seized power back.
She made the decision out of fear for his safety because family members had served in the toppled regime’s armed forces.
Haroon then endured a one-and-a-half-year journey before reaching the United Kingdom.
Remembering his journey to the UK, he said: "My family decided to send me out of Afghanistan.
"I didn’t know why at the time, but I later found out that they were scared that something would happen to me because members of my family were in the military.
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City of York Council has said that its forecasted £3.4 million annual overspend is an "incredibly positive" sign.
