A 17-year-old from York has made the final of a top UK pageant contest.
Megen England has been named as finalist in Miss Teen Great Britain.
The nationwide pageant aims to empower teenagers, have fun, make new friends, and memories.
For the winner, prizes include £1000 cash, and opportunities of appearances, charity work and possible modelling opportunities.
Past winners include social media influencer Molly-Mae Hague, who also appeared on Love Island.
Megen, who studies dance at York College, will travel down to Blackpool’s Globe Theatre for the Miss Teen Great Britain final on October 15.
She previously competed in the Miss Junior Teen Great Britain event when she was 14 years old, and said she is glad to be returning.
“I’m really excited about it,” she said.
“(The event) is where I started my pageant journey - it’s really exciting for me.”
The 17-year-old later competed in Miss Teen Pageant Girl in 2021 and 2022 where she placed third.
Megen was first attracted to pageants after being drawn to them on social media and spoke of how her mum decided to take the leap and enter her in one of the events.
“My mum entered me because she thought it would be a really good confidence boost,” she said.
The York College student said that taking part in pageants has helped her to grow as a person.
“I have been competing in pageants for over four years and my confidence has grown so much,” she said.
At the pageant there is a stage round where contestants showcase outfits, with both evening dress and high street fashion on display.
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Megen said she sources the outfits herself – shopping at VaVaVoom Boutique and Molly Browns, as well as online.
The pageant also features an interview round with judges, which Megen said: “Always scares me.”
On the run up to the pageant contestants fundraise for charities, which is a key part of the interview.
The interview also talks about the outfit choices and what Megen referred to as “bringing personality to the stage".
Megen aims to raise money for Together for Short Lives, helping children's palliative care, and the York-based Snappy Trust, helping children with special needs.
The teenager also hopes to work with charities and groups to raise awareness of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as part of her fundraising work.
She said she feels there is more work to be done in educating others about the condition.
Last month, Megen held an Easter Egg collection and managed to donate 103 chocolate eggs to the Snappy Trust.
Megen will be documenting her journey to the final in October on her Instagram page.
To keep up with her fundraising and follow her progress, follow her at @megenrosepageants
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