Three cheers for budding Basildon artists.

Hundreds of the district's schoolchildren put paint to paper to put a police spin on the Christmas story.

They were asked by police to come up with Christmas card designs featuring the boys in blue.

Remi Stuart, of Marylands Infants School, won the infants category with her Father Christmas dressed in a police uniform.

Kirsty Liddle, of Kingswood Junior School, won the junior section with her take on the Three Wise Men dressed as bobbies.

The competition was organised by the police's schools liaison section.

On the cards - winner Kirsty Liddle, centre, shakes hands with Denis Shepherd, watched and cheered by her classmates

Picture: MAXINE CLARKE

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.