Royal College of Psychiatrists has launched a set of four booklets aimed at improving the self-esteem of children who are that bit different.

The idea of 'being different' can be particularly challenging and upsetting for young children and the new 'Reading Lights' books aim to help children who have been stigmatised in the past because their behaviour differs from the norm.

It is expected they will be useful for parents, teachers, social workers, and foster carers to develop the child's strengths and confidence. They are also a way of helping other children understand what it feels like to be different.

The brightly illustrated books, which are aimed at four to seven-year-olds, have been produced by the Comic Company and have animals as the central characters.

They include Little Raja - the elephant with the troublesome trunk, Peeches - the puppy who screeches, Streaky - the annoying little piglet and Quackeline - the duck who wanted to be a swan.

They are being sold in sets of four, together with an activity poster, for £12 with discounts on bulk orders.

The books have been funded by a grant from the former Department for Education and Employment as part of the Royal College of Psychiatrists's five-year Changing Minds campaign to combat the stigma suffered by people with mental health problems.