Foyle Young Poets of the Year
The Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award 2024 is open for entries.
The competition is open to anyone aged 11–17. The deadline to enter your poem/s is midnight on 31st July 2024.
If you’re aged 11-17, send in your poems for the chance to be among the 100 winners and kick-start your writing career.
Poems can be on any theme and in any style but must be no longer than forty lines. You can submit as many as you like. Entries must be written in English, but you can include phrases in your mother tongue or another language. If you would like to enter an entry in BSL or braille, contact fyp@poetrysociety.org.uk.
Find out more here, and read the rules here. You can also check out lots of writing resources and tips here, and join Young Poets Network for free year-round access to writing challenges and features about the poetry world.
Winners of the award receive a range of prizes to help develop their writing. The top 15 poets receive a mentoring package with opportunities to receive support and feedback on their writing; and all 100 winners receive a year’s youth membership of The Poetry Society and a bag full of books donated by generous publishers. The Poetry Society continues to support winners throughout their careers providing publication, performance and development opportunities, and access to a paid internship programme.
Since it began 26 years ago, the Award has kick-started the career of some of today’s most exciting voices. Past winners include Jay Bernard, Sarah Howe, Helen Mort, Phoebe Power, Caroline Bird, Mukahang Limbu, Richard O’Brien and many more incredible poets. You can read last year’s winning poems for inspiration in the anthology, The Roots Belong to You (and anthologies from many previous years are available here), and scroll down to read the accompanying anthology of commended poems.
All entrants will receive an e-certificate for participating in the Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award. For any queries on how to enter this year’s competition, contact fyp@poetrysociety.org.uk or call 020 7420 9880.
