IT was a case of caps off to a Bury family who made the grade by graduating together from the same university.

Husband and wife Ian and Lorraine Baison, and daughter-in-law Michelle MacKin, graduated from Liverpool Hope University last week after studying through Holy Cross College in Bury.

Ian completed a BA degree in History, while Lorraine studied for a BA degree in Early Childhood and Education and Michelle studied for a BA degree in Education and Special Educational Needs. They fitted in studying around their day jobs and responsibilities, supporting each other in the process.

Lorraine, who now works in a school, said: “All my children have grown up now, and I thought this was my time to do something for me.

“We’ve enjoyed discussing our respective courses and supporting each other through the stressful times of exams and dissertations, when we were able to help each other by adding different perspectives. I’ve definitely grown and I see things differently now. I feel very privileged to be graduating from university, it is something that at one time I would have never believed possible.”

Michelle, who is married to Lorraine’s son and Ian’s step-son, juggled her degree with her two children and her job as a mental health support worker.

She said: “One of my greatest achievements has been completing the three years. To know you can put your mind to something and achieve it is a wonderful thing. This is something I have passed on to my children and they have seen how to apply yourself.”

Ian, who was a police officer, and who now works as a driver, said: “For a long time I had been interested in history, but I never thought I would ever get an opportunity to study it at my age. The last three years have probably been the best experience of my life. I just regret I never did it years earlier! For anybody out there who is my age, I’d say you can still follow your dream, if you still want to learn and want to be educated.

“I’m 57 and I just never thought I would be able to do it, but with the policies of today, and the way they do student finance, I had an opportunity that I never thought I would ever get. Hopefully I’m going to go on to do a Masters in International Relations.”