Four-year-old girl joins Mensa

A four-year-old girl has been accepted into Mensa after achieving a score of 159 on an IQ test.

Heidi Hankins was spotted as being of a "genius level" of intelligence after she taught herself to read, add and subtract and was able to count to 40 at the age of two.

Her father, Matthew Hankins, 46, from Winchester, Hampshire, who works as a lecturer at the University of Southampton, said she had shown signs of high development from a very early age.

He told the Hampshire Chronicle: "We always thought Heidi was pretty bright because she was reading early.

"I happen to specialise in measuring IQs in children and I was curious about her, and the results were off the scale.

"I got her the complete set of the Oxford Reading Tree books when she was two, and she read through the whole set of 30 in about an hour. It's what you would expect a seven-year-old to do."

John Stevenage, chief executive of British Mensa, said: "Heidi's parents correctly identified that she shows great potential.

"We wish them well, and are pleased that they have chosen to join the Mensa network for support, where we aim to provide a positive environment for younger members to develop."

PA