CHILDREN can be a television presenter for a day when ITV's Junior Newsreader Challenge comes to Castle Quay shopping centre, Banbury, on Tuesday, February 19.

The challenge, run by a team from ITV's Thames Valley News, invites youngsters to have a go at reading a news bulletin to a camera using an autocue - and participants will be able to take away a DVD of their performance.

A studio will be set up under Castle Quay's dome, between 10am and 5pm.

The challenge is free to enter, but parental consent must be given.

Wesley Smith, who presents Thames Valley Tonight each weekday at 6pm on ITV1, will drop in to the challenge at some time during the day.

He will give advice to some of the children keen to follow in his footsteps.

He said: "When I was young, I desperately wanted to be a television newsreader, so I would have jumped at the chance of taking part in a challenge like this.

"I'm sure that all the children taking part in junior newsreader will have great fun finding out just what the job entails."

A film crew from Thames Valley Tonight will be on hand to record the challenge for an item in the programme, and highlights from the day's events will be uploaded on to ITV's broadband service ITV Local (www.itvlocal.tv) which is available 24-hours a day worldwide.

The challenge is free to enter, but parental consent must be given.