Aspiring teenage doctors are this week having a taste of their own medicine at a summer school at St George's Hospital Medical School in Tooting.

More than 50 16-year-olds are taking part in A Taste of Medicine, the only medicine-specific summer school in Britain.

Participants in the week-long school, one of the Higher Education Funding Council for England's (HEFCE) national summer schools, have been selected from schools and areas across Britain, which have a below-average record of youngsters going on to higher education.

Kenton Lewis, widening participation officer at St George's Hospital Medical School, said: "A Taste of Medicine is a fantastic opportunity for hard-working and committed individuals to really get to grips with life at medical school, and we feel privileged to have this opportunity to guide the development of tomorrow's health care professionals."

The summer school is intended to raise the aspirations of those who may not have considered higher education.