A photographer whose portrait of child slavery was splashed on front pages all over the world has now seen it named as one of the World Press Photos of the Year.

Michael Sheil, who lives in west Oxfordshire, took the pictures for the Anti-Slavery League in west Africa.

He said: "The girl in the winning photo is 1,000 miles from home. She is about 10 and she probably spends 10 hours a day selling water, and the evenings working for her owner."

Mr Sheil said his attempts to interest the world's press in the problem were initially fruitless until a journalist in Gabon found a ship off the coast, full of children being trafficked.

"Suddenly it became big news," he said.