Worcestershire Schoolgirl Wins Halloween Competition

Alice with her winning picture and letter from David Shaw, with PC Tracey Wood, form teacher Miss Bigwood and CSO Teresa HowellsAn 11-year-old girl from the rural Tenbury area has been chosen as the south Worcestershire winner of West Mercia Police's annual Halloween colouring-in competition.

The poster by Alice Crump from Clifton-Upon-Teme was chosen from hundreds of entries in south Worcestershire and earned her a £20 book token and a letter from Chief Constable David Shaw.

The competition required children to colour in a poster that passes on messages about staying safe and respecting people's privacy when out trick-or-treating.

West Mercia Police received nearly 1,300 entries this year - the most the competition has ever had.

The prize was presented to Alice in an assembly at her school, Clifton-Upon-Teme Primary School,  by PC Tracey Wood and CSO Theresa Howells from the Tenbury Local Policing Team after the result had been kept a secret by all at the school and even her parents.

On hearing she had won, Alice said: "I was shocked and really surprised. I like colouring and being creative, which is why I entered. I also learnt some of the safety messages from doing the competition. I am going to spend my token on the last book in the Spiderwick Chronicles - I've read all the others. "

Her teacher Claire Bigwood added: "It's great to see Alice win. Competitions like this are a good way of getting messages across to children in a fun way, especially to those from a small community like ours."

Anna Thomas, Campaign Manager for West Mercia Police, said: "There was an excellent response to the competition - a really high entry.  I'd like to thank all the children who took part and hope they had fun colouring the posters while learning some important safety messages.

"A thank you also goes to the schools for allowing children to become involved as part of their class activities."

Issued: Friday, 02 December 2011