Artwork created by three Cambridgeshire girls will be shared across the county after they won a design competition to raise awareness of illegal money lending.
Year six students Lily Brand, Wiktoria Rozek and Keira Ridgway came out top of all entrants to win the first prize in the ‘Stop Loan Sharks Project’ competition.
The banners designed by the girls warn people of the dangers of loan sharks.
They also raise awareness of the support that is available to victims through the Stop Loan Sharks Project.
The girls were just three students out of a number of pupils at Burrowmoor School in March, Orchards Academy and Ramnorth Junior in Wisbech who entered the competition over the last two months.
The project was organised by the Fenland Community Safety Partnership and the England Illegal Money Lending team.
Fenland District Council’s portfolio holder, responsible for community safety, Councillor Andrew Lynn, said: “This design competition has been a fantastic opportunity for us to raise awareness in younger generations and across our community of the dangers of loan sharks.
“We would like to say thank you to all of the immensely talented children who participated for their dedication and hard work.
He added that he hopes that the messages they’ve shared will help to put an end to illegal money lending for good.
The girls each received a £100 Amazon gift voucher to spend.
Their designs will be displayed in communities and in high footfall areas across Fenland.
Two runners up from each school were awarded a £50 Amazon gift voucher in recognition of their hard work.
The competition was launched in June as part of a wider project to raise awareness of the dangers of illegal money lending.
Assemblies and creative workshops were held for Year six students at schools across Fenland to give young people the tools and knowledge they need to stay safe and make responsible financial decisions.
All designs from the competition are set to be showcased this summer as part of a touring display in Fenland’s libraries.
For more information on illegal money lending or to report a loan shark, please visit:
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