An Ipswich sixth form student is raising cash for two children’s charities as part of a national competition.

Emma Collingridge, who attends One college, formerly known as Suffolk One, is competing in the Miss Teen Great Britain event and has reached the semi-final stage.

The 16-year-old, who is studying five A-levels, will be raising money for charity as part of the competition in which she hopes to represent Suffolk at the final.

This Monday Miss Collingridge will be running the Bupa London 10,000 run, a 10km race through the centre of the capital.

“This is a huge challenge as I have never run anything like this distance before,” Miss Collingridge said.

The money she raises will be used to support Together for Short Lives, a children’s charity for young people with life-limiting conditions and the chosen charity of Miss Teen GB, and East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices.

Miss Collingridge said of the competition: “Miss Teen Great Britain competitions were created to be a positive and confidence building experience for young girls and teenagers and not simply a beauty contest.

“I am hoping to hear soon if I have made it through to the final 60 girls out of the hundreds of that are currently semi-finalists.”