When you say virtual accounts, do you mean they're not trading accounts, rather they mirror what you would have made had you invested real cash? Or are they online trading accounts with your money deposited in them?
Either way, to have made £6k and £7k in the space of a year sounds impressive. What % gain / how much capital invested to return those numbers?
I have a trading account with Hargreaves Lansdown that's made me about 1.5% over the last 18 months. Not great, but massively better than the measly 0.1% that my bank offers for a savings account. I stick to UK equities - partly because HL charges fees for holding funds and they don't offer FX trading, but also because it's easier to research quality companies if they're UK based. Most FTSE companies are paying dividends again now which, thanks to dividend reinvestment and compounding, makes any investment grow quicker. I use a buy and hold strategy i.e. buy high quality companies and hold them for at least 5 years.
Disclaimer: none of the above should be interpreted by anyone as investment advice. I'm not qualified and I simply state how I invest. What works for me may not work for you. Past performance is not an indicator of future performance yada, yada, you get the idea...