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You are never too old to log on to learning...

An IT student of Havering College of Further and Higher Education has proved that you are never too old to log on to learning after celebrating his 100th birthday at the end of March.

Computer-savvy centenarian, Sidney Platt, has been studying OCR computer courses at the college's Romford IT Learning Centre for the past five years. He has become so good on the PC that he now develops his own spreadsheets and databases to manage his finances and investments! Sharp-minded Sidney boasts an OCR CLAiT Level 1 Certificate, covering spreadsheets, word processing and databases and is now working towards a CLAiT Plus (Level 2) Certificate including programmes such as Advanced Database and Excel.

When asked what he uses his new found skills for, he replied: "Excel is something I have to do as I handle a large portfolio of investments, which I probably couldn't cope with entirely by memory."

Sidney, who has a son, aged 72 and daughter aged 65, continued: "I started using computers on the old Amstrad system so I've seen some really big changes over the decades. I have learnt lots of little tips and shortcuts on the computer that most people don't know! I enjoy going to the centre because I always get a lovely smile from the ladies there and I can impress them with new computer tips.

"There is always something new to learn and I have found learning new computer skills has kept me up-to- date with all the new technology."

The former business owner also revealed the secret of his long life saying: "The key is lots of exercise and I have had plenty of it in my life. I used to play tennis and fence and I even piloted a plane at the age of 92! Porridge is also the secret to a long life - I have it in the morning and it's the best start to the day."

Amazingly Sidney still fluently speaks German, French and Italian and plays the piano. IT Centre Manager, Monica Irvine, paid a tribute to Sidney this week saying: "He is one of the trail blazers of the centre. He always wants to know how to get the best out of Microsoft! We would call him an advanced computer user. He's an amazing character and a real inspiration to others."

To mark his milestone birthday, which was on Easter Sunday, staff and students of the college threw a special champagne buffet in his honour at the IT Centre. During the event the Sidney was presented with a tankard and crystal Havering College paperweight. However the celebrations didn't stop there, the college whisked Sidney off to the Houses of Parliament for a VIP tour with MP for Hornchurch, John Cryer and lunch at the famed Thames Restaurant.

Sidney added: "The trip to the Houses of Parliament was fantastic. It has been a colossal week for me with the birthday party and trip. I didn't think it was anything special to reach 100 years old - lots of people are reaching 100 but I'm told even if that's true, there aren't many 100-year-old IT students!"