Newcastle-under-Lyme poetry competition launches for National Poetry Day

Newcastle-under-Lyme BID and WordCraft have launched a poetry competition for all ages, with £50 prizes and the theme of Wonder.

THE SIGNAL BRIEF

What’s new: Newcastle-under-Lyme BID and WordCraft have launched a new poetry competition inspired by this year's National Poetry Day theme, Wonder.

By the numbers: There are three age categories, under 11s, 11–17 and 18+, with a £50 prize for the winner of each category.

What’s next: Entries are open throughout October, with selected poems set to appear in Poetry Pick Ups and future creative projects across Newcastle-under-Lyme.

Newcastle-under-Lyme BID is teaming up with local spoken word night WordCraft to launch a new poetry competition celebrating creativity and encouraging people of all ages to put pen to paper.

Launching to mark National Poetry Day on Thursday 1st October, the competition takes inspiration from this year's national theme, Wonder and invites people to submit an original poem inspired by what the word means to them.

Entries will be welcomed throughout October across three age categories: under 11s, 11–17 and 18+, with a £50 prize available for the winner of each category.

A selection of poems will be shortlisted before being considered by a judging panel featuring local poets and creatives, including Emily Galvin-Wilson, co-founder of WordCraft and former Staffordshire Poet Laureate alongside ArtsKeele and Newcastle-under-Lyme BID.

The winning words won't just stay on the page.

Selected poems will be transformed into specially designed Poetry Pick Ups, created in collaboration with a local artist and made available for people to discover and take away from locations across Newcastle-under-Lyme and Keele University.

The winning work will also be showcased in the town centre, with plans for poetry from the competition to form part of a future art installations and public realm works.

The partnership will continue into 2027, with Newcastle-under-Lyme BID and WordCraft also developing a dedicated spoken word programme as part of next year's Lymelight Festival. The new addition will create a platform for poets, performers and emerging voices alongside the festival's established live music programme.

The project builds on Newcastle-under-Lyme BID's wider work to bring art, performance and creativity into everyday town centre spaces.

The BID previously commissioned local poet Nick Degg to create Down Castle, a poem celebrating Newcastle-under-Lyme which was later incorporated into public artwork in the town centre.

Charl Pearce, Newcastle-under-Lyme BID Manager, said:

“Poetry has this brilliant ability to capture a place, feeling or idea and make somebody else stop and see it differently. We’ve seen that through our work with local poet Nick Degg and Down Castle and National Poetry Day felt like the perfect opportunity to celebrate even more voices.

“You don’t need to consider yourself a poet to enter. We’d love to see people of all ages having a go, particularly children and young people, and perhaps discover some of Newcastle’s next generation of writers along the way.

“We’re also really pleased to be working with Emily and WordCraft to create more opportunities for spoken word in Newcastle, including plans for a dedicated WordCraft stage at Lymelight 2027.”

Emily Galvin-Wilson is a poet, artist and former Staffordshire Poet Laureate and co-founder of WordCraft, a regular spoken word and poetry night bringing writers and performers together in Staffordshire.

Emily Galvin-Wilson, added:

"Through my time as Staffordshire Poet Laureate, and through the work we've done with WordCraft, I've been constantly awed and delighted by the power that poetry has to bring communities together, and to reach people in new and unexpected ways.

We have such a wealth of creativity and talent across this County, and I can't wait to what people come up with in response to the National Poetry Day prompt.

It's such an exciting premise, and fantastic to see poetry being so celebrated across the town."

The partnership will also shine a spotlight on live poetry, with the next WordCraft event taking place at The Crossways in Newcastle-under-Lyme on Tuesday 29th September, just ahead of National Poetry Day.

Entries open on Thursday 1st October and close on Saturday 31st October 2026.

Further details on how to enter and competition terms will be available on @newcastlebid on social media.