A YOUNG girl rubbed shoulders with Prime Minister Boris Johnson after winning an art competition.
Gaia Thompson, nine, of Tankersley, entered the competition - Your NHS - which was supported by the Department of Health and Social Care and the South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Integrated Care System.
The competition invited schoolchildren in the area to get creative to mark £57.5m of government investment to build new GP surgeries, nurse-led clinics and pharmacies across the region.
Gaia, a Tankersley St Peter’s Church of England pupil, beat other entrants across South Yorkshire and was crowned the winner for her design.
As part of her prize, she was invited to 10 Downing Street to meet the Prime Minister along with the other nine winners from across the country.
The panel of judges were impressed by Gaia’s imaginative and inspiring winning entry and particularly enjoyed how Gaia’s drawing looks into the future by imagining robot doctors, floating chairs and disappearing injury sprays.
In addition to meeting the Prime Minister, Gaia also won a £500 art voucher for the school.
She said: “I really love drawing and it was so much fun imagining what my local hospital could look like in the future. The NHS makes me feel safe and loved because it helps all of us so much when we are sick.”
Headteacher Jayne Proctor-Blain added: “We are very proud of Gaia. The competition was a great opportunity to get our children thinking about the NHS and I for one can’t wait to see some of Gaia’s ideas come to fruition in the future.”
