Two Glasgow primary pupils win national design competition

Peyton Gallagher, a P7 pupil at Blairdardie Primary School, and Sophie Cairney, a P7 pupil at Lairdsland Primary School received a visit from a "larger-than-life" version of a mascot they created after winning a national design competition.

The event was run by Scotmid and its charity partner, Children’s Hospices Across Scotland (CHAS) in a bid to give children across the country the opportunity to create the new face of its charity partnership.

Over 2,000 entries were submitted and the decision was made to have two winners instead of just one.

[Cuthbert the fox and Tildy the toadstool.]

The youngsters designed Cuthbert the Fox and his puppet pal Tildy the Toadstool.

The "bright and colourful" characters surprised the pupils at their respective schools on Monday. 

Peyton, 11, expressed her excitement after meeting Cuthbert "in real-life".

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[Peyton Gallagher, 11, with Cuthbert the fox.]

She said: "I was so excited when I saw Cuthbert in real life – it was such a great surprise!

"Even though I designed him, seeing him as a full-size character was even better than I hoped. 

"I hope he will make lots of other children as happy as he has made me!"

Sophie, also 11, 'couldn’t believe it' after she was picked as one of the winners and came face-to-face with Tildy.

[Sophie Cairney, 11, with Cuthbert the fox and Tildy the toadstool.]

She added: "I still can’t believe I was picked as one of the winners and coming face to face with Tildy as a giant cuddly toadstool was brilliant. 

"I designed her using lots of bright colours and seeing her brought to life was really special. I think she makes a great sidekick to Cuthbert the Fox and I can’t wait to see them out and about next year!"

As well as seeing their winning designs in person the girls each received an A3 framed print of their character, £200 of fundraising vouchers for their school, and mascot merchandise. 

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Lynne Ogg, Scotmid Communities Manager, said: "We were overwhelmed by the response to our competition.

"Picking just one mascot seemed impossible so we picked two to represent our charity partnership with CHAS!

"It was so exciting to surprise both Peyton and Sophie with their winning designs - we hope our mascots will continue to bring smiles to faces for years to come."

Nicky Bridges, Associate Director of Outreach at CHAS, commented: ­"We were really impressed by Peyton and Sophie’s designs and we hope that the fun and friendly Cuthbert and Tildy will bring some joy to those we provide essential care to.

"We are extremely grateful to the huge efforts made by Scotmid and everyone who entered the competition to make this happen."