Terms & Conditions
These terms and conditions are applicable to all Young Writers' competitions unless otherwise stated. If a competition has different terms and conditions, these will be clearly stated on the competition page / competition entry form(s).
By entering any of Young Writers' competitions, you agree to accept and be bound by these terms and conditions. All entry instructions form part of the terms and conditions of Young Writers' competitions.
Terms of Entry
(Abbreviated terms of entry are provided in competition packs to teachers / organisations by post with instructions that full T&Cs are available on our website.)
- Entry to any Young Writers' competition is FREE and no purchase is necessary to enter or win a prize for individuals or schools.
- Work must be original (not copied).
- Copyright remains with the author. We cannot publish work without permission. The work is published in a named title. If the work is chosen as a winner the work will be published on our website.
- Competitions are open to different age ranges and will be clearly presented on any competition materials and competition web pages. Competitions are also listed by age range: Nursery, EYFS, 4-7, 7-12, 11-18, all ages.
- Competition closing dates are clearly marked on any competition materials and competition web pages.
- Young Writers' main competitions usually run for one academic year, once each term. This is subject to change, but prizes for launched competitions will not be affected.
- Unless otherwise stated entries are only accepted from UK schools or UK independent entrants. School entries must be submitted via a teacher by post, email, upload or Online Writing Portal. Finished entries in the Online Writing Portal are auto-submitted after the closing date - please remove work if you do not want it entered. Independent entrants need to follow the rules provided on each competition page.
- If any competition results in less than 500 entries Young Writers reserves the right to cancel the competition & prizes and move entrants to an alternative competition instead.
- The promoter of Young Writers' competitions is Bonacia Ltd, Remus House, Coltsfoot Drive, Peterborough PE2 9BF. Bonacia Ltd is a Limited Liability company incorporated in England and Wales with registered number 05368980. VAT registration number is 102781343.
Publishing Criteria
Our Editorial team select work to be published based on several criteria, which is age-relevant:
4-7 Year-Olds (Infant School)
- Creativity
- Imagination
- Use of language
- Interpretation of theme (if applicable)
- Age is taken into consideration
- Any learning difficulties editors are made aware of are taken into consideration
7-12 Year-Olds (Primary School)
- Creativity
- Imagination
- Use of language
- Originality
- Interpretation of theme (if applicable)
- Age is taken into consideration
- Any learning difficulties editors are made aware of are taken into consideration
11-18 Year-Olds (Secondary School)
- Creativity
- Imagination
- Technical writing ability
- Originality
- Interpretation of theme (if applicable)
- Age is taken into consideration
- Any learning difficulties editors are made aware of are taken into consideration
All entrants have a realistic chance of seeing their work in print (average 65%). Entrants who are chosen for publication will be asked for parent/guardian's permission to publish the work. Published entrants are then considered for a prize.
Winners' Criteria
- Being chosen for publication is not "winning" the competition
- Winners are chosen as the best writer or poet in the book, based on the publishing criteria above.
- Winners are picked through a panel of judges; Young Writers' Editorial Team and Young Writers' Independent Poetry & Literary Adjudicator.
- Winners must be published in the book (permission to publish must have been given before the deadline provided to parent/guardians).
- There is no purchase necessary to win a prize.
- Pupil / Independent entry winners' names, ages, schools (if applicable), book title and piece of work are displayed in the winners' section of the Young Writers website.
- By accepting the prize, pupil winners agree to their name, age, school (if applicable), book title and piece of work being displayed in the winners' section of the Young Writers website; school winners agree to their name, location and book title the work is published in being displayed in the winners' section of the Young Writers website and being stated in a press release to local media.
- Prizes are as stated on each competition page. Pupil prizes advertised per book are awarded and announced upon publication of each title. Pupil & school prizes advertised per term are awarded and announced in the next term. Pupil & school prizes advertised per competition are awarded and announced in the next academic year. Winners are notified in writing. Young Writers will never ask winners for payment for their prize, please be mindful of scammers.
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