Sheffield youngster's greeting card design wins £500 of books for school

Bradway Primary School pupil Luella Barrett, age ten, won a competition by Redbrik Estate Agents to design a card for customers on the anniversary of moving into their new homes.

The books from Rhyme and Reason, on Ecclesall Road, were presented to the school along with a framed version of Luella’s treehouse-inspired design at a special assembly in front of hundreds of other pupils.

Luella said: “I felt shocked when I found out I’d won, I’ve never really won anything big, nothing like this.

“I was very proud but also nervous being presented in front of assembly.”

Mum Katie Barrett later said that the youngster had had ‘the best day of her life’ with the presentation.

Luella had just recovered from breaking both of her wrists in summer 2019 when she decided to enter the competition.

She had been unable to play sport or take part in many other school and social activities for months previously.

Explaining her creative process, she said: “My dad built a treehouse when I was five years old and I loved it, but we had to move and couldn’t take the treehouse with us.

“So I was thinking about that treehouse because I’d love to have one again. I thought of everything that went into it to make it so special, how I enjoyed playing in it and I tried to make it as much as I could into the picture.”

Daniel Stones, deputy headteacher at Bradway, said: “The prize will make such a huge difference to the pupils in our school.

“The books are going to help children discover and enjoy stories for years to come.”

Redbrik director David Cooper, who presented the prize, said: “Giving back to the local community is something that we’re really passionate about.

“The whole team were absolutely blown away by Luella’s creativity, the colours in her design and her imagination.

“She really brought her idea to life, and I’m sure it’ll put a smile our buyers’ faces when the cards drop through their letter boxes.”