A gifted 8-year-old boy has gained an A* in GCSE Maths despite being half the age of most other students.

Xavier Gordon-Brown, from Haywards Heath, was so unfazed at taking the examination at such a young age he has now got an A-level in his sights.

He said: "I was pretty confident, the GCSE was easy."

But for a child who plays the violin to Grade 6 standard, clarinet to Grade 4 and piano to Grade 5, speaks three languages including Latin and also enjoys a healthy mixture of football, street dancing and Taekwondo it was all in a day's work.

His parents Erica and Michael Gordon-Brown - whose surname is a double-barrelled family name - are somewhat bewildered by their son's prodigious ability.

Mrs Gordon-Brown, an interior designer whose husband works in the City, said: "When he does something he likes to do it well but the exam didn't bother him. To him it's just maths.

"He hasn't been hothoused. He set himself very high standards and to be honest it can drive me to distraction sometimes!

"Xavier has always done his own thing. He tends to have an idea of what he wants to do and then gets on with it. I tried to get him to give up just one of his activities recently because I couldn't keep up with all the running around but he wouldn't hear of it."

Xavier knew his times tables before the age of four and could do double-digit mental arithmetic before he started school.

But his parents have insisted that he should not race straight to the GCSE and so he passed through all the Key Stage tests first - passing them all with flying colours.

"I didn't think it was healthy to skip any steps. The teachers started by giving him a few harder questions. Whatever he does he just does it quickly. He can just pick stuff up very fast," said Mrs Gordon-Brown.

The Gordon-Browns had a bit of warning that their third child was likely to be something of a prodigy. His brother, now 18, and sister, now 15, had both taken their maths A-level before the age of 11.

They both won scholarships to prestigious private schools Winchester College and Roedean.

Xavier took his GCSE with Ryde Teaching Services this year and hopes to do his maths A-level at the Hemel Hempstead centre next term in addition to his normal schooling at Blackthorns Primary School in Lindfield.

Mrs Gordon-Brown admits: "It is hard to find a school where he was with children who are like him. It is very difficult when you have a very bright child so see them doing less than they can, that's why we had to go as far as Hemel Hempstead to find a course for him."

Click here to read about GCSE results throughout Sussex. This page will be updated with individual schools' results throughout the day