WINNERS of a writing competition at Crossford Primary School have received a special congratulations from Paralympian gold-medallist Owen Miller last week when he presented their prizes.

Kids from the school were asked to write about a person they admire, with authors from around Scotland judging the entries.

On the same day, the children came to school dressed as their hero to raise funds for the Parent Council.

Owen Miller, who won gold in the men’s T20 1500m at the Paralympics in Toyko earlier this year, grew up in Crossford and attended Woodhill High School.

Winners wrote about people as diverse as Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, and Emma Watson – famous for playing Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter movies.

Other winners spoke of their admiration for family members, particularly those working in the health services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The winners for each class were: Sophie Hutchison-Reddie (Hermione Granger, from Harry Potter); Beatrix Carter (Doctors and Rosie Craig – Katie Morag, book character); Hannah Downie (Valentina Tereshkova, first woman in space); Katie Hopkin (Emma Watson, actor);, Katie Wylie (her dad); Olivia McGurk (her auntie, a nurse); and Connor Keicher (late stepdad, former police officer).

Lorna Bernard, headteacher at Crossford Primary School, said: “All of the children did a fantastic job writing about people they admire. It is important for young people to have role models.

"For them to write about their own heroes and then meet Owen, a hero right on their doorstep, is fantastic and shows what they might be able to achieve in the future as well.

“We had such a range of people the kids admire, from athletes and family members to cosmonauts, doctors and authors.

"Congratulations to the winners and to everyone for doing such a good job taking part."