A INSPIRATIONAL schoolgirl has become one of Inverclyde's most decorated dancers - only a year after a major spinal operation that threatened to rob the talented teenager of her mobility.

Isla Robertson, 16, grabbed glory at the Renfrewshire Annual Competition at the Gamble Halls in Gourock just 12 months after doctors told her she may never compete again.

She was diagnosed with Scheuermann's disease and scoliosis and underwent a seven-hour operation at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh.

Isla, who lives in Glen Douglas Road, with her parents Alison and Brian and younger brother Euan, said: "To win was quite overwhelming actually.

"I did six performances and placed in every one."

Isla, a pupil at May Hughes School of Dance, received two second places, two thirds, a fourth and a sixth place.

Her family were there to cheer her on on the day.

Alison, 44, said: "It was nice that the first one back was a local competition.

"She's keeping in really good health and is back attending five dance classes a week, Highland and tap. She still has days when she is sore because she has overdone the practice."

The St Columba's pupil has been dancing since she a little girl but hadn't competed for six years due her crippling back problems.

Her condition is caused by abnormally shaped vertebrae.

In the teenager's case they took on a wedged, triangular shape and this left her vertebrae out of position, combined with a curvature of the spine.

It's believed that the problem developed during a growth spurt between the ages of 12 and 15.

She underwent major corrective surgery where two titanium rods were inserted in her back using 15 bolts.

Alison says the operation was a gamble because there was no guarantee Isla wouldn't be left in pain or be able to dance again.

She said: "If she had decided not to go back to dancing after all she has gone through, it would have been understandable, but instead that goal drove her on.

"I told her 'even if you only do one competition and tick that box', you will have achieved something amazing but it was her goal all the way through her recovery."

Isla admitted she felt nervous prior to taking to the floor.

She added: "Competition is different to classes, but I was determined to do well."

Her dad Brian, 45, said: "She is unbelievable. It beggars belief that someone of Isla's age is able to face something as daunting and come back so strong."

Isla has already lined up her next competition, which will be in Beith in Ayrshire on November 23.