WHEN five-year-old Hanna Herrera Pasqualin started doodling on a napkin in McDonalds one day, she was giving the first inkling of a special talent.

To the mild surprise of her mum, Lydia, Hanna's drawing won her a prize. That could have been a one-off but when the youngster then won a district council art competition as a six-year-old, Lydia suspected there was more to Hanna's artistic abilities than met the eye.

As success followed success, it dawned on Lydia that she was the mother of a child prodigy. After an understandable first flush of parental pride, Lydia had to do some serious thinking.

She was in a position few parents find themselves in - having a gifted child but faced with the dilemma of how best to nurture that latent talent.

"Initially, when you are faced with this gifted child, yes, it's brilliant but it's also a huge responsibility because I couldn't help her so I had to find people who could," said Lydia.

Although they now live in Queen's Road, Evesham it was in Bedfordshire that an art teacher at the school attended by Hanna identified her skill at the age of nine.

A visit from the local education authority's art advisor led to her being placed on the county's gifted children register and earning an art scholarship.

When the family moved to Evesham a year ago, Hanna became a pupil of Prince Henry's High School, which has done everything it can to maintain her accelerated progress. For example, Hanna has day release to study art at Worcester College of Technology.

She has won several national competitions, had her work exhibited in London and earned money from her paintings, some of which have been specially commissioned.

Lydia has also registered Hanna, now 14, with the National Association for Gifted Children but only after giving it a lot of thought. She said: "You don't like to think 'am I just a pushy parent?'

"I'm no artist; I look at her work and think it's brilliant but who am I to judge?"

"The association covers all abilities so, regardless of what particular gift a child has, they try to offer help and support."

Lydia summed up her view on helping talented children fulfil their potential by saying: "You can't hold them back."

Hanna is likely to take her A-level art exams two years early and will probably go on to do an art foundation course at 16.

The National Association for Gifted Children is based in Milton Keynes and its website address is www.nagcbritain.org.uk.