Andrea, 15, was one of four winners of the M&S’ Young Designer competition, launched in partnership with YoungMinds.
The competition, which launched in February, asked entrants to design T-shirts for the M&S and YoungMinds Hello Yellow kidswear collection.
Andrea’s limited-edition t-shirt design, ‘We’re all different’, was chosen out of more than 8,000 entries and is now available to buy on the M&S website.
Entrants were asked to focus on the question: “What would you say to a friend who needs you? How would you brighten their day?”
Two rounds of judging took place, with the final round’s judging panel consisting of M&S kidswear director, Alex Dimitriu, interim chief executive of YoungMinds, Abigail Ampofo, winner of BBC’s Race Across the World, Alfie Watts, and Pearson’s teacher of the year, Oli McVeigh.
Andrea’s design, which features multicoloured cats, was inspired by how everybody’s mental health is different.
She said: “I really enjoy drawing in my spare time so wanted to give the competition a go.
“With my multicoloured cats, I wanted to show that you might not be able to tell someone is struggling from the outside and how even if as humans or cats we are all different or feeling different, we are all still the same and everyone deserves to be treated kindly.”
Andrea has also created a pair of smiley face earrings to wear for Hello Yellow Day on October 10.
Hello Yellow Day aims to show young people they are not alone, at a time when an estimated one in four people aged 16-24 now experience a common mental health condition.
Research by M&S and YoungMinds suggests young people that are struggling are most likely to turn to their parents or carers for help.
Schools can sign up to take part in Hello Yellow Day, or customers can show their support by wearing yellow or donating to the charity in M&S stores, or by selecting YoungMinds as a chosen Sparks charity via the M&S app.
Twickenham MP, Munira Wilson, said: “I am delighted that Andrea has won this competition, and hope she is as proud of her achievement as we all are.
“I’m grateful to Andrea for her part in raising awareness about children and young people’s mental health, which is such an important issue.”
Jo Daniels, head of community at M&S, added: “Huge congratulations to Andrea for being one of our Young Designer winners.
“We’ve been blown away by the number of entries and also the quality and positivity of the designs.
“We cannot wait to see customers’ reaction to this year’s Hello Yellow collection and it’s brilliant to support YoungMinds’ free and confidential parents helpline as well as all they do to show young people they’re not alone.”
Since launching their partnership in 2023, M&S and YoungMinds have raised £4.4 million, helping the charity reach even more young people and the adults who support them.
