On Monday 2nd July, hundreds of school pupils from across Norfolk gathered at Norwich Cathedral for the fifth annual Norfolk Children’s Book Festival, hosted by Norwich School. The event, part of the school’s Gather 18 festival and YNAF (Young Norfolk Arts Festival), was an opportunity for young people from across the county to hear from top authors and poets. The speakers included Julian Sedgwick, Michelle Paver, Steve Feasey, Mitch Johnson, Matt Windle, Ali Sparkes and Eleanor Wasserberg, author and English teacher at Norwich School.
Winners of the 500-word Creative Writing Competition were announced:
Junior (Year 6) Prize:
1st - 'The Tortoise', Emily Perfect, Kinsale Junior School
2nd - 'Ivy's Day Out', Alisha Chan, Kinsale Junior School
Senior (Year 7) Prize:
1st - 'Shipden's Siren', Joe Askew, Sheringham High School
2nd - 'The Teddy with the One Button Eye', Keisha Clarke, Archbishop Sancroft High School
The event was a great success with overwhelmingly positive feedback. After poet and speaker Matt Windle’s session, one attendee said to him "I really didn't like poetry but now I think it's really good." If the aim of the event is to inspire young people through literature, it certainly achieved it!
Above: Matt Windle, poet and speaker
Above: Creative writing competition winner of the Senior Prize - Joe Askew, Sheringham High School