AN artist who spent his childhood in care is on a mission to recover the art work he did as a youngster.

Rob Haworth, of Parker Street, Preston, started his quest six ago when he first came across a picture of a butterfly he had done as a teenager on sale in a shop.

Since then he has been searching car boot sales, charity shops and fetes looking for his early work.

To date Rob has found eleven pieces of art which he says he created during his time in children's homes.

"I get overwhelmed sometimes and get goosebumps," he said. "It's a really strange feeling.

"When these care homes close, a lot of the stuff goes to charity shops.

"That's where the trappings of my early life would have ended up."

He has even found a painting of a fighter aircraft on a stall at the car boot sale at Preston Market which he claims he did when he was ten years old.

"I was walking around the stalls on the market and saw it," said Rob, who has three children. "I was looking at it and just told the trader that I had done it. He was amazed."

Rob, who's now 29 and a prolific painter, was taken into care at just 15 months old.

He spent his early years, moving from one children's home to another, and living with different foster families.

As a teenager he lived rough, on the streets, in London and Blackburn for seven years, before setting up home in Preston with his partner, Jayne, three years ago.

Now Rob has created his own website at www.iamthebutterflyman.com to give hope to other budding artists from troubled backgrounds.

He said: "If people have been down in their life and depressed and going through difficult times, they can pick themselves up.

"But it isn't happen by itself, you have got to be prepared to make a stand."