I have a new hero…

Her name is Martha Payne.

You may have read the news coverage of this intrepid nine-year-old whose blog, NeverSeconds, has made headlines.

She started photographing her school meals and giving them various ratings in a bid to a) improve the quality of school meals and b) to raise money for Malawi-based charity Mary’s Meals.

The blog was an instant hit, drawing praise from fellow campaigner and celebrity chef Jamie Oliver. Children from as far afield as China and Canada were sending in pictures of their school dinners as they lapped up what she was writing.

But like Jamie's work in the UK and LA, Martha’s efforts were not universally appreciated...

When a local newspaper picked up the story and gave it the headline “Time to fire the dinner ladies”, Martha was hoiked out of her maths lesson by her head teacher and told to stop photographing her meals. The local council was leaning on the school in a bid to silence its outspoken food critic.

Argyll and Bute Council accused the nine-year-old of “misrepresenting” the menu options available and refused to budge, even when Jamie Oliver and fellow celebrity chef Nick Nairn intervened. It looked like the ban would stick.

What she thought would be her last blog entry was titled “Goodbye” and read: “I only write my blog, not newspapers, and I am sad I am no longer allowed to take photos”. Freedom of speech (and photography) had been dealt a major blow.

But then people power took over. There were almost three million visitors to her blog and a large proportion of these expressed their anger at the decision on Twitter.

It was too much for the local authority, which backtracked and overturned the ban, claiming there was “no place for censorship in Argyll and Bute Council”. But best of all, the extra publicity has helped the schoolgirl campaigner raise nearly £46,000 for her chosen charity.

A spokesperson for the Mary’s Meals said: “We are extremely grateful for everything that she has done to help us reach some of the hungriest children in the world.”

I’m glad Martha’s blog has the green light to continue; it really is extremely articulate. But it was also great to see that so many people were prepared to fight her corner and to show that they too cared about the quality of the food their children were being offered.

And it also appealed to the public’s better nature. While impressive donations of around £2,000 had come in before the story broke, the giving level has rocketed over the last few days and has now grown enough to build at least one school kitchen in Malawi. According to her father, Martha may even be dreaming of a visit to Malawi to see where the money has gone (and to check the quality of the meals, no doubt).

This girl’s creativity, eloquence, innovative approach and fighting spirit really appeal to me, and to millions of people around the world. I only wish I was brave enough to stand up for the things I believe in!