Foyle Schools Poetry Competition Awards Ceremony and launch of Rhyme & Reason at Rath Mor

Creggan Enterprises (CE) will also be launching and distributing free copies of Rhyme & Reason, a selection of poems from the inaugural Foyle Schools Poetry Competition, at the event on Friday.

Some 25 schools from across Derry submitted over 1,000 entries featuring poems based on the themes of ‘My Dream’ for the Key stages 1-2 and ‘My Community’ for Key stages 3-4 and Post 16.

Grainne McCool, a skilled facilitator, delivered a series of poetry workshops to pupils in the older categories in preparation for their submissions. The poems were judged on their creativity and originality and their ability to capture the essence of the assigned theme.

The winning entrants and those who were highly commended (136 in total) have been published in Rhyme & Reason and will receive a range of prizes on the day.

The Foyle Schools Poetry Competition was co-ordinated as part of Creggan Enterprises’ Revival Shared Space Project supported by the NI Executive (T:buc) under the Central Good Relations Fund. The Competition is the result of a creative partnership between Creggan Enterprises, Guildhall Press, Colmcille Press and Little Acorns Bookstore in an effort to promote and strengthen shared community spaces and encourage literary and creative expression.

Conal McFeely, Development Executive of Creggan Enterprises, commented on the high standard and quality of the entries.

He said: “The young poets demonstrated a remarkable ability to express themselves in a range of styles and insightful creations – sometimes vulnerable, powerful and thought-provoking, often humorous and playful, yet always entertaining and engaging. As a result, the judges had the near-impossible task of assessing the various interpretations of the themes and selecting the winning entries.

“We hope that the project will serve as a reminder of the importance of developing shared communities and nurturing the boundless potential of young minds. Society often thinks about young people as ‘citizens of tomorrow’ and fails to give due consideration to them as ‘citizens of today’ – we need to change that. It is important to provide accessible ways to promote the voices of our younger generations, encouraging them to express their unfettered creativity and platform their opinions about the here and now, their communities and the world as they see it, as well as their dreams for the future. Our aim is to build on the success of this inaugural competition and offer similar opportunities to platform the voices of even more young people in the future.

“We congratulate all the entrants and thank them for sharing their talent, insights and wisdom with us. We also extend our gratitude to all the schools/colleges and the many parents, teachers, and mentors who have supported these young poets in their creative journey and to all who participated in, and contributed to, this inaugural Foyle Schools Poetry Competition,” Mr McFeely added.