SHOLA is Tavistock College’s resident puppy and has proven to be a real hit with students and teachers alike — bringing a smile to everyone’s face as she jauntily trots down the school’s corridors.

Shola is an Irish setter puppy who already has an adoring public and expects everyone to love her.

The four-month-old puppy attends staff briefings in the early morning, then in this exam season it is off to meet and greet any students waiting to take their exams. She has a real ability to identify students suffering from stress, which her presence seems to alleviate.

Before one exam the college had a student so stressed she felt she couldn’t take the exam, but meeting Shola brought a smile to her face and she was then able to go in to sit her exam. In a class with some students known to be worried and anxious, Shola will invariably choose to sit beside those students rather than the other, calmer, students.

In any day in college she will meet well over 100 students and staff.