Six-year-old girl's drawing is on Big Issue cover

A drawing by a six-year-old girl has been chosen to appear on the cover of the Easter edition of the Big Issue magazine.

April, from Northampton, won a competition based on the theme peace which was judged by the illustrator of The Gruffalo, Axel Scheffler.

Her picture is of a smiling child asleep in a bed with the words "peace is a safe bed to sleep in".

Her father, Nick, said: "It was only after I saw what she'd drawn that I explained how the Big Issue helps people who might not have a safe place to sleep, or a bed to sleep in at all, and that her picture might actually hold greater meaning."

"April's drawing was simple - someone in bed, smiling, eyes closed.

"That's what peace means to her," he told the Big Issue.

When he told April the magazine supported people who were experiencing homelessness, she said: "It must be scary for people who don't have a safe bed or have to live outside.

"I know I am lucky to have a safe bed to sleep in."

Scheffler pored over hundreds of entries before choosing April's.

"I was impressed by the entries and many had a really good feeling for design," he said.

"In such troubled times in the world, it was great to see the younger generation thinking about and expressing the importance of peace, kindness and having a safe place to sleep."

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