LITTLE Charlotte Hempsall is taking the archery world by arrow storm. In only her first national archery competition, the 11-year-old Blackburn schoolgirl walked away with two bronze medals.

Charlotte, a pupil at Westholme School, joined nearly 300 of the country’s top young archers for this weekend’s National Junior Outdoor Championships at Lilleshall National Sports and Conferencing Centre in Shropshire, taking third place in the Metric V and Bristol V competitions for girls under 12.

Charlotte joined the Bowmen of Pendle and Samlesbury about 18 months ago and is also a member of the Lancashire Junior Archery Squad. Since taking up archery she has been busy knocking the opposition for six, shattering both club and county records in the process.

Her dad, Rob, said: “Charlotte was up against archers with much more competition experience than she has but she handled it brilliantly. I want to thank everyone at the club for all the help, advice and all-round support Charlotte's had over the last few months – it's been a massive help that she feels so comfortable shooting round the grown-ups. She's over the moon with her weekend's work.”

Club chairman, Di Clarke, said: “Charlotte has done incredibly well this weekend. She works hard and is very determined. She’s a little treasure.”

The Bowmen of Pendle and Samlesbury has indoor and outdoor shooting ranges at Nab’s Head Lane, Samlesbury, where the junior club meets every Saturday morning.

Other club members taking part in the national championships were Lewis Imeson, 13, of Barrowford, a pupil at St John Fisher and St Thomas More High School, Colne, and Martha Blinkhorn, 16, of Chatburn, who has just left Bowland High School and hopes soon to go to St Mary’s College, Blackburn.