An 11-year-old girl from Romford has won a prestigious award and has been named runner up in a national writing competition.

Zara Ahmed, 11, from Grove Primary School, fought off strong competition from children all over Britain for the Explore Learning’s National Young Writer competition.

Her story, Toby’s Tudor Terror, was about a boy who swapped places with Henry VIII’s son Edward.

The competition was judged by bestselling author of the hugely popular Spy Dog series, Andy Cope.

He said: “The entrants this year completely blew me away. These are some of the best young writers in the country and I’ve loved the opportunity to get involved in a competition where we encourage children to put pen to paper, get inspired and create something that’s never been created before.”

Alexis Humphrey, from Explore Learning, was thrilled with the number of entries received this year.

She said: “Writing is a fantastic pastime for children. As well as helping with their grammar and spelling, it takes them away to another place where anything goes. It lets their imagination run free and we were amazed by the inventiveness of some of the stories we received.

“We’re proud to put on a competition that attracted so many entrants and want to congratulate all our participants, especially our runners up, who fought off tough competition to have their stories named the best in the country.”

The National Young Writers’ Award is an annual event organised by tuition provider, Explore Learning, which provides English and maths tuition to five to 14-year-olds, with a centre based at Sainsbury’s The Brewery, Romford.