A CARING Swindon girl has won an art competition organised by a builder.

Eight-year-old Katie Jones, of Meadow Road, put the spotlight on children who face being without their fathers at Christmas because they are serving abroad.

She entered a competition run by Persimmon Homes Wessex in which youngsters throughout Wiltshire were asked to draw a picture on the theme, Home for Christmas. She won £100 in Toys R Us gift vouchers. Her picture showed a child sitting by a Christmas tree, saying: “I don’t want presents, I just want Daddy home”. The picture includes a mum saying she also wished Daddy was home, while outside a soldier at the door says: “Hooray! I am home”.

Katie’s mum, Claire Jones, said: “She has always enjoyed drawing and seems talented.

“She often has her pictures picked out at school. She was excited about entering the Persimmon Homes competition and gave it a lot of thought, so she was absolutely thrilled when she won.”

Pauline Fletcher, sales and marketing director for Persimmon Homes Wessex, said: “The quality of the entries for the competition was high and we were delighted with the response.”

The competition ran in a Persimmon Homes Wessex newsletter called My Life, which was delivered to homes throughout the region in September.