AN 11-year-old schoolgirl's artistic skills have won her first prize in a police drawing competition.

Ashleigh Wong, a pupil at Parkview Comprehensive School, in Chester-le-Street, saw off more than 800 entries from youngsters across north Durham to produce a logo for the Chester-le-Street and Durham Ethnic Liaison Group.

Her winning design, which is based on the Olympic flag, features a series of interlinked hands in red, green, yellow and blue.

The poster has won Ashleigh £100 worth of vouchers to spend in MetroCentre shops, a prize donated by the local crime prevention panel in Durham.

Local community safety officer PC Sue Hoggarth said: "The standards of entries was amazingly high, but Ashleigh's design was especially eye-catching.

"We know young people are increasingly aware of race issues and the competition seemed a good way of getting them on board to make a positive contribution."