A POOLE teenager has made it to the finals of a national beauty pageant competition.

Jess Stoddard, 19, recently won the title of Miss Galaxy Bournemouth and will now be competing in the grand final in the hope of being crowned Miss Galaxy England.

If she wins the title, she will fly to the United States with contestants from all over the world to compete in the international final, which is being held next summer.

Jess described it as a “once in a lifetime opportunity”. Contestants from the UK have enjoyed success at the Galaxy international pageant before, winning the crown five times and securing placements in every division for the past four years.

Jess, who is a recent graduate from the Big Little Theatre School and has been in many local productions including Joseph and the Technicolour Dreamcoat, said: “I am so excited to have made it to the final. It is a great achievement and I cannot wait to meet all of the other girls.”

She said she aimed to change people’s perceptions of pageants, which have a reputation among some of being ‘shallow’ and ‘frivolous’.

“Lots of people wonder why I started entering the pageant scene. When people who are unfamiliar with the programme hear about Miss Galaxy, generally, they instantly think of a typical beauty pageant.

“It is so much more than that, with many layers of depth that many people never know or experience. The Miss Galaxy pageant celebrates strong, committed young women who are willing to represent the community as a goodwill ambassador, becoming a role model of today while strengthening our city for tomorrow.

“I want to change people’s perceptions of pageants, proving that anyone can succeed and highlighting the importance of self-belief, what you want to accomplish, and your inner beauty.”

She added: “As a young girl, I found it hard to have self-confidence as so much in the media when I was growing up was negative towards larger girls, showing only very small models on television and in magazines.

“I am so happy that things are starting to change. I want to be able to go into schools and teach younger girls the importance of self-belief and self-worth from a young age. Anyone can be anything they want. They just have to believe in themselves.”

The Miss Galaxy England final takes place in March at the Park Hall Hotel in Lancashire.