A COMPETITION to design and write a leaflet on the red fox has been launched by Epping Forest Council's animal welfare team.

The contest is open to anyone aged between five and 15 who lives or attends school or a youth group in the district. The competition will be split into two categories, five to nine-year-olds and ten to 15-year-olds.

Entrants must design the cover of the leaflet, adding information on the red fox inside is optional.

A winner and two runners-up will be picked from each category. Each will win prize vouchers which can be used at any of the district's sports or leisure centres.

Entry forms are available from schools or the animal welfare team. Entries must be with the animal welfare team at the Civic Offices, High Street, Epping, by Wednesday, March 31. The winners will be presented with their prizes at a dog show in Waltham Abbey on Sunday, May 2.

A council spokesman said: "We chose the red fox this year because we get a lot of enquiries about them from residents, especially when they see them when they're poorly.

"We felt we had already covered other issues like dog fouling in previous years, and we thought the red fox would be an interesting topic."