A teenager has beaten hundreds of aspiring stage stars to the final of a competition to write a song for charity.

In 2015 the Jack Petchey Foundation will have been helping young people in London and Essex for 15 years.

Shannon Herbert, 16, has written and recorded her own song with the hope of winning the anthem competition being run by the charity.

The former Highams Park School student, of Coolgardie Avenue, now attends The BRIT School.

The winner will be decided by the number of  ‘likes’ the songs receive on YouTube and a final decision by the judging panel.

Voting closes on September 25.

The winner will record their song in a leading London studio and perform it at the Jack Petchey Foundation’s Festival of Youth in spring 2015.

To view and vote click http://youtu.be/0Cownj0Uizs.