Maria Gardner has been crowned as Miss Birmingham 2016 at the end of the final, held on March 23rd 2016 at the Macdonald Burlington Hotel, in Birmingham. The lady clinched the coveted crown after defeating 39 other contestants.

With the Miss Birmingham 2016 title, Maria will now go on to represent Birmingham at the Miss England grand finale that will be taking place in Southport later in July. The winner of Miss England will represent England at the Miss World pageant.

The 22-year-old model is not a stranger to the pageantry world, having travelled the world for her modeling expeditions.

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After entering at the pageant, Maria confessed that she was nervous before participating, but it was the charity, Beauty with a Purpose, and the opportunity to become an ambassador for Birmingham that gave her the required confidence.

“I was so grateful just to be a finalist! It still hasn’t sunk in that I was crowned the winner”, said Maria, “I always commit 100% into everything I do and this has proven to me that hard work can pay off and you can achieve your dreams”.

After collecting funds for humanitarian charity, Beauty with a Purpose, Maria spoke about her plans, “I can’t wait to begin my journey and go to sleep every night and feel, ‘Yes, I have achieved something great today and made a difference. As Miss Birmingham, the charity element is the main reason I loved doing this contest”.

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