Some of Norfolk’s most promising young writers, aged 10–18, gathered to perform their original work at the 2025 Young Norfolk Writing Prize ceremony, hosted by the National Centre for Writing. The showcase marked the tenth anniversary of the region’s largest annual creative writing competition, celebrating creativity, imagination, and the voices of the next generation.
This year’s Prize introduced a special category, the UNESCO City of Literature Award, in honour of its milestone anniversary and in recognition of 2025’s Refugee Week theme: ‘Community as a Superpower’. Two standout writers, Akhina Rajesh and Bruna Ramalho, were named winners of the UNESCO Award for powerful entries exploring refuge and the strength found in solidarity during crisis.
Hannah Garrard quote, Senior Programme Manager at National Centre for Writing, said:
‘This year’s winners across all the age categories have shown tremendous creativity, observation and originality in their writing and I look forward to seeing what they do next.
‘Two winners have been awarded the UNESCO City of Literature prize for their pieces which responded to the theme of Community as a superpower in support of Refugee Week this year. It is encouraging to see the Prize becoming a platform for young people to write about what matters to them and the wider world.’
To win and know that people connected with my words has been such an incredible, surreal experience, and it’s really given me more confidence to keep sharing my work.
The winners of the Young Norfolk Writing Prize 2025 in alphabetical order are:
- Sammir Amani, ‘A Scar the Wind Still Carries’, City Academy Norwich, age 15
- Mia Atkinson, ‘Cathedral’, Norwich High School for Girls, age 17
- Roshan Deb, ‘Finding Norwich’, Hethersett Academy, age 15
- Etta Ferner, ‘The Lighthouse Keeper’, Gresham’s School, age 12
- Shreya Ganguly, ‘Little Pond for Eyes That Turn to Watch’, University of East Anglia, age 18
- Molly O’Connell, ‘1p Short of Society’, Cromer Academy, age 11
- Akhina Rajesh, ‘Vellapokkam’, Northgate High School, age 14
- Bruna Ramalho, ‘Refuge’, Jane Austen College, age 18
Read their winning entries
A further four young writers received commendation from the judges (in alphabetical order): Esther Broad, Alice Dubroeucq, James Hamlin and Andrea Lee.
Be the director of your future, and never let anything or anyone but creativity and imagination lead you. So go out there and write your way up!
The Young Norfolk Writing Prize is open annually to all 10–18-year-olds who live or study in Norfolk. Celebrating creative writing in all its forms, from stories and poetry to song lyrics, spoken word, journalism, scripts, podcasts, game narratives, and more, the competition continues to champion diverse voices and storytelling styles.
This year, the Prize received over 126 entries, with 26% of participants identifying as neurodivergent — reflecting a broad and inclusive community of young writers.
The Young Norfolk Writing Prize is made possible through the support of Norfolk County Council and Arts Council England.
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