In many regional Miss England heats and photo contests a public vote is held where the public are invited to vote for their favourite girl. Harleen Sidhu won the public vote and will now enter the fierce competition.
Although she didn’t win Miss Birmingham 2017, this has allowed her with a second chance of trying to advance further in the Miss England competition.
Harleen Sidhu is a full-time teacher at an all boys secondary school. She is rainsing money for Miss Birmingham’s chosen charity, Beauty with a Purpose. This charity helps the sick and disadvantaged children.
Sidhu had graduated from Aston University in MSc Health Psychology.
Harleen said, “I applied with hope and a little hesitancy to the Miss Birmingham pageant and was thrilled when I realised that I had made it to the finals
“For someone who underwent bullying, anxiety and a huge lack of self confidence, I was able to build myself again through positive experience in voluntary work.
“By working with various communities within Birmingham, I found my self-confidence again, as well as a desire to see others succeed.”
She added, “What struck me the most about the Miss Birmingham pageant was how it uniquely brought together the element of beauty and charity.
“The panel are not just looking for an attractive face or body, but they’re looking for a people person, an ambassador thriving to go out into the city and contribute and raise awareness of principal issues.
“As I’m extremely keen to spread the word about lifelong learning and supporting mental health, I felt that this platform provided a fantastic opportunity for my personal and professional experiences to do this and do it well, to make my mum and my city proud.”
After leaving Aston University, Harleen went into volunteering as she wanted to connect with others within the wider community. She volunteered with non-profits organisations such as the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Diabetes UK and the UK Asian Women’s Centre.
She has also worked with vulnerable customers in Debt Management in at the Royal Bank of Scotland. She works as a volunteer at her university on the Graduate Mentor scheme to help final- year Psychology students.
She particularly enjoys taking part social charity events. She has participated in the 10K Great Run for Mamillan Cancer Support and helps distribute resources and clothes to the homeless at the Birmingham Food Drive.
She is an ambassador for the Workers’ Educational Association, a charity organisation which promotes lifelong learning and adult education across the UK.
The Popularity Heat will be held on the 10th June 2017.
