The winners of this year’s YCAA Young Writers’ Prize have been announced!
This competition was open to eligible youngsters anywhere in Somerset. The YCAA Young Writer’s Prize 2023 presentation of certificates and book tokens took place in Yeovil Library with five talented writers of the future reading their winning entries.
YCAA chair Liz said
What fantastic imaginations these winners displayed! They also fulfilled the theme of the competition by using their courage to read out loud in front of an audience. You know I champion young people going that extra mile, outside of the school hours, to explore their personal talents. So to see and hear such a high standard of writing was rewarding. From our winners I recognised one from dancing with the Helen Laxton School of Dance performing on stage last week in Everybody Dance 2023 at the Octagon Theatre. Another recently won awards in her trampolining class. Another loved sport as well as writing, especially football. That was music to the ears of Louis from the Yeovil Town Football Community Trust who supported, once again, the YCAA competition.
The winners were Siobhan from Preston C of E Primary School; Emily from Milfield Preparatory School; Lily from Kingfisher Primary School; Eliza from St George’s Catholic School, Taunton; the overall winner with her story ‘Reach for the Stars’ was Mia from Countess Gytha Primary School, Queen Camel. In addition to Mia winning £30 in book tokens and her framed certificate, Yeovil Town Football Club has invited her class to attend the Yeovil -v- Oldham fixture on 22nd April. With two teachers, her family, and class friends they will watch the game, during half-time she will be presented with a framed and signed shirt for them to hang in the school , followed by running a lap of honour around the field before starting the second half. What an absolute treat! These young people lead very busy lives so finding some quiet time to write a poem or story is something wonderful, and I hope their presentation in Yeovil Library will sit in their memories for a long time. Well done to each of them!
For information about writing competitions run by the YCAA, please visit our Competitions page. The annual Yeovil Literary Prize for adults is open until the end of May. For details of categories, rules and prizes, please visit the Yeovil Literary Prize website.