Crankcase, Just keep cracking away at those ATPL subjects and keep applying, something will give...By the way,don't ever give up, where there's a will, there's always a way! I eventually had to go the self financing route which takes a lot of time and money (even though I have a HND).
By the way your life around the time you were taking your A levels sounds hauntingly like mine, hence my A level results are worse than yours..I'm truely sorry for your loss.
Good luck.
F-S