An office worker from Ashford has set up a slimming group after losing an amazing five and half stone in weight.

Colette Hall, 26, of Albert Road, who dropped from 13st 9lb to 8st 5lb, has launched her own group to help others after her own life was transformed.

The Murphy ATM employee initially joined Slimming World after her older sister Roisinc, 29, lost four and a half stone in 2009 and her younger sister Eilis, 18, lost more than three stone.

“For most of my life, I had been overweight,” she said. “In fact, all of us were – me and my two sisters. I tried all sorts of diets over the years, anything I could think of, but it never worked.

“To outsiders, I have always been a very bubbly, larger than life character – always smiling and joking – but inside I was depressed, angry and fed up.

“Many of my close friends are very slim, and I had resigned myself to being the ‘big one’ in the group. No matter what gimmicks I tried, the weight always crept back on.”

Miss Hall, pictured right with her two sisters before and after the weight loss, said she fell into a routine of eating big portions, having regular take-aways and drinking alcohol without doing exercise.

“The lowest point came when I was denied the repeat prescription of my contraceptive pill because my BMI was too high – I was at the heaviest I’d been,” she said.

After joining Slimming World she shed more than five stone and now hopes to help others mimic her success.

“Since losing the weight, I have never felt happier or healthier,” she said. “I’m not laughing to hide my insecurities any more – I am laughing because I am so proud of myself. I am so excited to be able to offer other people the same experiences I have had, and show them that nothing is impossible.”

Colette’s new Slimming World group is at Ashford Oaks Primary School, Oak Tree Road, Ashford at 7.30pm every Monday.