Lego building competition organised by James and Scarlett Tuttle from Tilbury for terminally ill children

A BIG-hearted brother and sister duo have organised an Essex-wide Lego building competition to raise funds for terminally ill children.

James and Scarlett Tuttle, of Raphael Avenue, Tilbury, will also reach into their own pockets to give the competition winner £200 which their grandmother gives to them every Christmas.

St Mary’s Primary School pupil James, seven, and Gable Hall pupil Scarlett, 13, decided to organise the competition because they wanted to help people less fortunate than themselves after hearing about patients at Westcliff-on-Sea's Havens Hospice, which provides care for terminally ill children and adults.

Scarlett, 13, said: "When my grandmother told me about the children in the hospice it made me really upset and I thought it would be great if we could do something to help them and make them happy - especially around Christmas.

“I think this competition will be really fun and it just goes to show that children can make a difference when they put their minds to it.”

The competition, which costs £2.50 to enter, is for six to 10-year-olds and will take place at the Cliffs Pavilion in Southend-on-Sea on January 3, 2009.

Among the judges will be the Mayor of Southend Councillor Gwen Horrigan OBE.

The event will also feature Baroness Von Mehren, who is a friend of James and Scarlett’s grandmother, Maggie Tuttle.

The Baroness will be on hand to sign copies of her children’s book, “Mr Snowy the Ambassador from the Antarctic”.

The story is about a polar bear who makes it his mission to save the environment.

Baroness Von Mehren, who is from Scotland but lives in Toronto, Canada, is writer and radio health presenter.

Mrs Tuttle, of Poyning’s Avenue, Southend, said: "I've always been immensely proud of both my grandchildren in everything they have done, and this competition is something I wanted to wholeheartedly support them with.

“James especially is a big fan of Lego so this will be a very exciting start to 2009 for him.

"How it came about was that the grandchildren and I sat down and we discussed first the Lego competition, then James was given a Polar Bear from Toronto who became Mr Snowy - and the rest can be read in the book."

To find out more about the competition call 07767710756.