By Community Correspondent, Philippa Hennessy Seven year old pupils from The Rowans School in Wimbledon were the youngest finalists to take part in a competition run by Merton Council. School children across the borough were asked to write rap and song lyrics to promote National Walk to School Week by raising the profile of the health and environmental benefits of walking to school. Scooping the overall top prize was 15 year old Shannon Lindo from Ursuline RC High School in Wimbledon - Kiss FM will be visiting Shannon at school to record her rap as a podcast for all to pick up on-line. As runners up, 'The Rowans Rappers' along with the other finalists received their awards at a special ceremony held at the Merton Civic Centre in Morden last week. Merton Mayor Councillor Nick Draper handed out the prizes together with Kiss FM breakfast show presenter Charlie Hedges. The children also met Debra the Zebra.

Mayor of Merton Councillor Nick Draper said: "It’s great to see so much talent in the borough. I heard Shannon’s song and was impressed both by the strong health and environmental messages and by the complex internal rhythms that were in her rap. It’s a wonderfully creative way to engage these young people in the importance of living an active life."

Merton Council’s cabinet member for environment and leisure services Councillor David Simpson said: "We had a fantastic response to the competition and I was delighted to see so many young people working so hard to promote greener ways of travelling to school. It is great to see that we have so many talented writers in the borough.

"Protecting the environment and cutting CO2 emissions is vital to our commitment to maintaining Merton as one of the greenest boroughs in London and making sure we keep it as a pleasant place for our residents and visitors to live, work and enjoy."

Schools who took part in the competition: Ursuline Roman Catholic High School The Rowans All Saints Church of England Primary School Aragon Primary School Benedict Primary School Dundonald Primary School Garden Primary School Gorringe Park Primary School Hollymount Primary School Joseph Hood Primary School Merton Abbey Primary School Stanford Primary School Wimbledon Chase Primary School Lyrics to the winning rap by Shannon Lindo of Urusline RC High School: Verse 1 Walking to school can become a real tradition Get kids all over town to make it an expedition To mingle, be healthy and have their own position Taking things for granted is not a brilliant decision You’re lucky you’ve got legs to walk, perhaps to an exhibition With all the disabled, less fortunate people just waiting for their vision To see what it’s like to be free, walk safely to education It’s been a long time since they’ve not had a complication Chorus Walk to school and eliminate the thought of beating time Be happy, have fun and make it a real good time Of walking to school everyday with the best frame of mind And that’s what walking to school is, and trust me, it’ll be divine