A TALENTED young artist narrowly missed out on the top prize in the first national competition she entered.

Graphic designer Hayley Hilario, 18, made it through to the final short-list of nine in the competition Life Support: Change Through Art.

The competition, run by charity YouthNet, invited people aged 16 to 25 to illustrate how the financial crisis had affected them and their communities through film, photography or illustration.

In Hayley's entry, entitled Draining The Cash, she used her graphic design skills to add the message "Your money is down here" onto a picture of a drain.

Although A-level student Hayley, of Cecil Road, West Croydon, missed out on winning the competition she is still determined to forge a career in art.

She said: "My first reaction at being shortlisted was absolute shock.

"I was really excited to be a part of a big event and to be acknowledged as an artist as I'm only a college student and didn't think I'd be experiencing something so exciting so early.

"My piece represents how people are oblivious to the major issues going on in society, like the recession and poverty.

"Even though we hear and see things on the news, we still don't do anything about it."