ELEVEN-YEAR-OLD Alice Carr was thrilled yesterday when she discovered that she has been chosen to feature on the front cover of a calendar issued by Barnardo's.

The publication features the words rather than the face of the youngster, who lives with her parents in Barnard Castle, County Durham.

Alice is one of the youngest volunteers in the Green Explorers' group, which takes part in community projects and helps less fortunate young people in Teesdale. She took part in a summer holiday scheme, paid for by the Barnardo's Better Play Fund, to promote recycling and improving the local environment.

At the end of the holiday scheme, all those taking part in similar projects around Britain were asked by Bardardo's to write a paragraph, saying what play means to them.

A number have been included in the organisation's 2006 calendar - but Alice's words take up the main position on the front cover.

She wrote: "Play means to me having fun with my friends and working together as a team.

"I really enjoy being taught new skills because it widens my range of interests. I prefer learning and playing with other people, rather than playing by myself."

Anne Noble, who runs the Green Explorers, said yesterday: "We are proud that Alice's words are on thousands of copies of the calendar and will be read by people all over the country.

"She is a kind and helpful girl, who is especially good at assisting handicapped children when we work with them. It is wonderful that her thoughts about playing have so impressed the Barnardo's officials."

Alice, a pupil at Green Lane Primary School, in Barnard Castle, said: "It is brilliant to see my words on such a nice calendar. I never expected them to be printed in a way that would let many people read them.