Talented Rafe is a regional winner of ‘Premier League Writing Stars’ poetry competition

Six-year-old Rafe, from Delph Primary School in Oldham and Leo, aged nine, from Lily Lane Primary School in Manchester, have been named as the regional winners of the third Premier League Writing Stars poetry competition.

Rafe’s poem ‘My ambition’ was selected as the winning entry for the North West region in the Key Stage 1 age group (5-7 years), while Leo’s poem ‘I saw the future winking’ was selected as the winning entry for the Key Stage 2 age group (7-11 years).

Thousands of primary school children across England and Wales entered this year’s competition, which tasked pupils with writing an original poem on the theme of ambition; encouraging them to dream big for themselves and the world around them.

This year’s exciting judging panel consisted of Waterstone’s Children’s Laureate, author and illustrator Cressida Cowell, Leicester City footballer and Premier League champion Wes Morgan and poet and author Karl Nova. 

The judging was overseen by National Literacy Trust Chief Executive, Jonathan Douglas, who joined the trio on a video conferencing call to debate the shortlisted entries.

Wes Morgan said: “It’s been fantastic to be involved in this competition.

"I want to congratulate every child who took part as I’ve had the opportunity to read some really inspirational poetry.

"Each and every one brought to life the theme of ambition in such a personal way.

"I feel like I could read some of these poems to my teammates in the locker room before a game and get them inspired and motivated to give 100% on the pitch.”

The poems were judged on a range of criteria including creativity, vocabulary and originality.

The two national winners have been selected alongside nine regional winners across two age groups - Key Stage 1 (5-7 years) and Key Stage 2 (7-11 years).

A Welsh winner and a Welsh-language winner have also been selected at Key Stage 2.

Karl Nova said: “I’ve loved being part of this judging panel and I am really grateful to the Premier League for promoting art and poetry among young kids.

"I was so impressed by the quality of the writing, choosing a winner was certainly not easy.”

The competition is supported by the National Literacy Trust and is part of the Premier League Primary Stars education programme, which uses the appeal of the Premier League and professional football clubs to inspire children to learn, be active and develop important life skills.

Visit: www.plprimarystars.com for free downloadable Premier League Primary Stars activities and resources suitable for home and school learning across English, Maths, PSHE and PE.

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