Category: Events

Junior Poetry Slam 2022

Demand for the Junior Slam was so high this year, we needed to hold 3 performances! The event was part-funded by the Samuel Butler Foundation and Arts Council England, enabling us to put poets into schools where they worked with classes.

Kat Francois introducing the schools

Following their two-days of coaching by poets from The Poetry Society, pupils from 13 schools took to the stage at RichMix to perform their work solo and in groups.

Pupils from Clara Grant School

Slam One

Cayley Primary School : Winner : ‘Best line’ from Naima, “not of straw and timber like two silly little pigs”
Watch Cayley’s performance

St Pauls Primary School : Winner : Best Poem from Nafisa, “My city my heart”, good imagery and rhythm

Watch St Pauls’ performance

William Davis Primary School : Winner : Best group performance – well performed, with actions and without notes “This is what the grown-ups say…”

Watch William Davis’ performance

https://youtu.be/bUplFJqVFmQ

St Lukes Primary School : Winner : Best effort – performed extremely well on Zoom

Watch St Lukes’ performance

Clara Grant Primary School : Winner :Best Individual performance from Tanisha – confident, funny and involved the audience.

Watch Clara Grant’s performance

Performers from St Annes & Guardian Angels school

Slam Two

St Annes & Guardian Angels Primary School : Winner : ‘Best line’ from Cleo, “the city changes like a chameleon”
Watch St Annes & Guardian Angels’ performance

Hermitage Primary School : Winner : Best Poem by Lisha, – lots of lovely imagery “red buses crawl around like ladybirds on a leaf”, “clippers like dolphins”

Watch Hermitage’s performance

Lansbury Lawrence Primary School : Winner : Best group performance for their teamwork

Winner :Best Individual performance from Anisha, a passionate performance

Watch Lansbury Lawrence’s performance

St Johns Primary School : Winner : Best effort – Lila for returning to the stage and performing well

Watch St Johns’ performance

William Davis School group performance

Slam Three

St Saviours Primary School : Winner : ‘Best line’ from St Saviour’s Group “when the sugar bomb hits you like a bowling ball hitting skittles”
Watch St Saviours’ performance

Harbinger Primary School : Winner : Best Poem from Gaia, for good imagery and using two languages

Watch Harbinger’s performance

Thomas Buxton Primary School : Winner : Best group performance – for teamwork, a well-constructed performance, good rhymes and well-delivered

Winner :Best Individual performance from Ayesha, for good use of poetic technique – similes, alliteration

Watch Thomas Buxton’s performance

Some of this recording is audio only at the request of the school

Osmani Primary School : Winner : Best effort – for team communication and good structure to poems

Watch Osmani’s performance

Some performances were not recorded at the request of the school

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25/02/2022
World Book Day 2022

We are delighted to announce that Rashmi Sirdeshpande, author of one of the World Book Day books amongst many others, will be our headline act for World Book Day 2022 – Thursday 3^rd March 2022

We are aiming to put on two live events this year. Rashmi will be at the Genesis Cinema for two events – 10.30am to 11.30am and 1.30pm to 2.30pm and will sign copies of her books after each event.

Rashmi is a British Indian who started out as a lawyer before realising her much better potential as a writer of exciting stories and intriguing non-fiction books for children! Her non-fiction books include “GOOD NEWS: Why the World Is Not As Bad As You Think”, shortlisted for the Blue Peter Book Awards 2022, “Never Teach a Stegosaurus To Do Sums”, shortlisted for the Sainsbury’s Book Awards 2021, How to Change the World and How to be Extraordinary which detail amazing things women, men and children from many different backgrounds have achieved. Her new book all about growth mindset and semi-autobiographical, “Yes, You Can, Cow!”, will be hot of the press at the time of her talks.

Her talk is suitable for KS2 and KS3.

Booking

For schools who subscribe to the Schools Library Service, this event is £2.50 per pupil and £4 per pupil for all other schools.

Please book by 18^th February (end of half term) by sending an email, stating morning or afternoon (or “don’t mind”), and the number and year group/s of the children you wish to bring to Gillian.harris@towerhamlets.gov.uk.

13/01/2022
Tower Hamlets Book Award 2021
About the Book Award

The annual Tower Hamlets Book Award is just one of the exciting events made possible through subscriptions to the Tower Hamlets Schools Library Services.

The Book Award is for pupils aged 10 to 13 (Year 5 and up). The aim is to encourage children to read, to bring children together to enable debate and discussion about books and to encourage children to share the pleasure of reading.

You can shadow the Book Award in small or not-so-small groups. Have a look at the award timeline below for some ideas of activities.

Congratulations to Joseph Coelho!

Joseph became the 15th author to win the coveted Tower Hamlets Book Award for Zombierella

Brilliantly illustrated by Freya Hartas, this alternative fairytale which proved a hit with both primary and secondary school pupils shadowing and voting in the award.

The finale!

Canary Wharf group – as well as buying sets of the shortlisted books for our subscribing schools – kindly hosted the Book Award grand finale at the fantastic East Wintergarden venue on 2nd December.

Pupils from over 20 schools were present to meet authors Jasbinder, Ben and Jennifer and enjoy the performances put on by Blue Gate Fields Juniors, Cyril Jackson Primary, Thomas Buxton Primary, Marner Primary, Morpeth School, Stepney All Saints School and Hermitage School.

Blue Gate Fields took the prize for best presentation with their performance of scenes from ‘The Soup Movement’.

Jennifer, Ben and Jasbinder award the prize for best performance

Book Award Timeline and Guidelines

Download as a .pdf

Book Award Guidelines 2021
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The shortlist

THBAShortlist2021 – Download the Shortlist PowerPoint slideshow

All subscribing schools will receive a free set of the 6 books. Non-subscribers – check out our website for all the great benefits of being a member of a schools library service!

Schools may order additional sets (with library book jackets) for £45 per set. Please email jacob.turner@towerhamlets.gov.uk

The Soup Movement by Ben Davis

Jordan promises his very good friend Rio he would do an act of kindness whenever he could and help change the world. Was that really why he gave up his mum’s wholesome soup to a homeless man? In any case, that one small gesture became life-changing, and helped Jordan adjust to a world without Rio.

Undercover Robot by Dave Edmonds and Bertie Foster

Year 7 is tough enough without having to pretend you’re a human (and what does it mean to be human, anyway?), but that’s exactly what Dotty has to do. Only she now also has to worry about a boy in her class outing her in order to win a reward…

The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang

A graphic novel. Prince Sebastian is looking for a bride, or rather, his parents are looking for one for him. Sebastian is too busy hiding his secret life from everyone. At night he puts on daring dresses and takes Paris by storm as the fabulous Lady Crystallia – the hottest fashion icon in the world capital of fashion!

Zombierella by Joseph Coelho

A yellow moon hangs in a satin sky the night Cinderella, barefoot and in hand-me-downs, slips at the top of the stairs … and dies. But not for long. Cinderella goes forth as ZOMBIERELLA!. With her skin as cold as ice, can she seek revenge on her three cruel, fake sisters, once and for all?

Tamarind and the Star of Ishta by Jasbinder Bilan

Tamarind never knew her Indian mum, Chinty, who died soon after she was born. So when she arrives at her ancestral home, a huge mansion in the Himalayas surrounded by luxuriant gardens, she’s full of questions for her extended family. But instead of answers, she finds only an ominous silence.

Wonderscape by Jennifer Bell

After a mysterious explosion on their way to school, three children find themselves trapped aboard The Principia, a science research ship sailing through hazardous waters and captained by Isaac Newton. Lost in the Wonderscape, an epic in-reality adventure game, they must call on the help of some very unlikely historical heroes to play their way home before time runs out.

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Art Competition

Every year we run an art competition based on the shortlist books.

Pupils are challenged to create an artistic response of their choice to any of the 6 Book Award books.

Previous competition entries have included…
- Drawings/ paintings of scenes from the books
- Poems inspired by the stories
- Alternative endings/ scenes
- Comic strips based on the books
- Character portraits
- Book cover designs
- Bookmark designs
- Models of scenes from the books
Winners will be awarded a prize at the finale where shortlisted work will be on display (guest authors have been known to request competition entries to put on their websites!).

Competition deadline

ALL entries must arrive at the Schools Library Services (PDC, 229 Bethnal Green Road) by the morning of Friday 26th November for judging. Any entries submitted after this date will not be judged!

Register!

Registration for the finale will open in September. If you’re shadowing the award in your school, email jacob.turner@towerhamlets.gov.uk to be added to the THBA mailing list (and to let us know who to send the books and posters to!).

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08/11/2021
KS3 Poetry Slam 2021
4th November saw students from Morpeth School and Central Foundation Girls’ School battle it out at the KS3 Slam.

Students performed in individual and group categories and prizes were awarded for best group performance, best individual performance, and best line.

Winners were:
- Best Group : Central Foundation Girls’ School. Zaima Anas, Nasiha Ahmed, Rayah Rahman, Amera Otaifa, Lamisa Oishi and Malieha Choudhury
- Best Line was written by Amani Islam from Central Foundation Girls’ School. “Her house is a prison and she is losing the key”
- Best Individual act was Isa Haque (with beatboxing by Michael Sarumi) from Morpeth School
Our next Slam in 2022 is the Junior Slam for KS2. This will be run alongside the 2022 Creative Writing competition!

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05/11/2021

Creative Writing Competition 2021

I Am Not Alone

Click here to go to the theme and writing tips

Prize winners!

Prizes were awarded on 1st November. Well done to everyone who took part.

Winners below are listed in category and prize order
Prizes are a voucher/ book token, a certificate and a copy of the book I am not alone featuring their work

*Category*	*Name*	*School*	*Prize*
01. Year 1 and 2 Short Story	Kofi Akanbi	Globe School	1st and Best in School	Vex
01. Year 1 and 2 Short Story	James Orpin	Globe School	2^nd	Dino’s Dino friends
01. Year 1 and 2 Short Story	Ayman Uddin	St Johns Primary	3rd	The Lonely Bird
01. Year 1 and 2 Short Story	Rumaisah Minal	Wellington Primary	Commended	The happy monkey
01. Year 1 and 2 Short Story	Gaia Gessaroli	Olga School	Commended and Best in School	The parrot and the ice cream

02. Year 1 and 2 Poetry	Chaylan Hassan-King	St Johns Primary	1st and Best in School	Never Ever
02. Year 1 and 2 Poetry	Ruby Goundar	Globe School	2^nd	I’m not alone!
02. Year 1 and 2 Poetry	Laaibah Chowdhury	St Johns Primary	3^rd	I am not alone
02. Year 1 and 2 Poetry	Arnav Nalawade	Seven Mills School	Commended	I’m not alone!

03. Year 3 and 4 Short Story	Yasir Hussain	Osmani Primary	1st and Best in School	The Zombie apocalypse
03. Year 3 and 4 Short Story	Sameeha Ahmed	Wellington Primary	2nd and Best in School	Alone in the forest
03. Year 3 and 4 Short Story	Salma Khatun	Seven Mills School	3rd and Best in School	The Person who was remembered
03. Year 3 and 4 Short Story	Gracie Turner	St Johns Primary	Commended	The fox and the rabbit

04. Year 3 and 4 Poetry	Asiya Hussain	Blue Gate Fields Junior	1st (joint)	Never think that you’re alone
04. Year 3 and 4 Poetry	Aria Ixchel Khorsand-Martell	St Lukes Primary	1st (joint) and Best in School	The army of the cells
04. Year 3 and 4 Poetry	Aisha Nabi	Arnhem Wharf Primary	2nd and Best in School	Never alone
04. Year 3 and 4 Poetry	Zubair Yahya	Mayflower School	3rd and Best in School	My Life’s world
04. Year 3 and 4 Poetry	Anaya Alom	Halley Primary	Commended	Odd one out
04. Year 3 and 4 Poetry	Daisy Rubin	Globe School	Commended	I am not alone
04. Year 3 and 4 Poetry	Zidan Ahmed	Arnhem Wharf Primary	Commended	Bob, my imaginary friend

05. Year 5 and 6 Short Story	Leila Khelfaoui	Bangabhandu Primary	1^st and Best in School	I am not alone
05. Year 5 and 6 Short Story	Philomena Melchin	Blue Gate Fields Junior	2^nd and Best in School	2107 days
05. Year 5 and 6 Short Story	Samyath Satish	St Lukes Primary	3rd Joint	The Christmas Spirit
05. Year 5 and 6 Short Story	Daniel Anangodoi	St Mary and St Michael Primary	3rd Joint and Best in School	Pen to paper
05. Year 5 and 6 Short Story	Arafah Rahman	Lansbury Lawrence Primary	Best in School	I am not alone
05. Year 5 and 6 Short Story	Adifah Matubbar	Wellington Primary	Commended	I am not alone : In war
05. Year 5 and 6 Short Story	Maya Hussain	Halley Primary	Commended	DETREVENI
05. Year 5 and 6 Short Story	Omar Raja	Arnhem Wharf Primary	Commended	Alone
05. Year 5 and 6 Short Story	Ehsanul Huq	Bonner Bethnal Green Primary	Commended and Best in School	The Friend Machine
05. Year 5 and 6 Short Story	Katya Flynn	Virginia Primary	Commended and Best in School	When it first began
05. Year 5 and 6 Short Story	Myesha Amin	Halley Primary	Commended and Best in School	The lost island
05. Year 5 and 6 Short Story	Olivier Badzioch	Home Educated	Commended and Best in School	A sense of belonging

06. Year 5 and 6 Poetry	Oma Umo-Chinda	Harbinger Primary	1^st and Best in School	Rising and Alone together
06. Year 5 and 6 Poetry	Abdi Hakim Osman	Bigland Green Primary	2nd and Best in School	I am not alone
06. Year 5 and 6 Poetry	Lucy Richards	St Johns Primary	3rd	Light in the dark
06. Year 5 and 6 Poetry	Jiyaad Ahmed	Thomas Buxton Primary	Best in School	Burning
06. Year 5 and 6 Poetry	Zain Rahman	Osmani Primary	Commended	Nai
06. Year 5 and 6 Poetry	Humayra Rahman	Hermitage Primary	Commended and Best in School	Making way for the ones you love
06. Year 5 and 6 Poetry	Sumaya Islam	Clara Grant Primary	Commended and Best in School	My Voice!
06. Year 5 and 6 Poetry	Aoyan Arian and Mohammed Nihal Uddin	Bonner Mile End Primary	Commended and Best in School	Waiting for the end

07. Year 7 – 9 Short Story	Nadia Jamil	Central Foundation Girls School	1^st and Best in School	Her escape
07. Year 7 – 9 Short Story	Samirah Ahmed	Central Foundation Girls School	2^nd	Different ability
07. Year 7 – 9 Short Story	Zaynab Ali	Central Foundation Girls School	3^rd	Save the pangolins
07. Year 7 – 9 Short Story	Anisa Rahman	Stepney All Saints Secondary	Commended	The lonely mansion
07. Year 7 – 9 Short Story	Ayesha Janath Choudhury	Central Foundation Girls School	Commended	You’re never alone with a book…
07. Year 7 – 9 Short Story	Malieha Lemoni Choudhury	Central Foundation Girls School	Commended	Calypso’s island
07. Year 7 – 9 Short Story	Aadi Islam	Stepney All Saints Secondary	Commended and Best in School	Dee

08. Year 7 – 9 Poetry	Yasu Dos Santos Evora Gomes	Bishop Challoner Secondary	1^st and Best in School	Stained with red

09. Year 10 and 11 Short Story	Tamzid Mohamed	Morpeth Secondary	1^st and Best in School	Lone wolf
09. Year 10 and 11 Short Story	Muntaha Zaman Mamiza	Stepney All Saints Secondary	2^nd	The old willow tree

10. Year 10 and 11 Poetry	Shirley Razzak	Central Foundation Girls School	1^st	Honey

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The Book

Free copies of the paperback were sent to all winners and their schools. Copies are also available to buy on Amazon
The Tower Hamlets Creative Writing Competition is an annual event for schools in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets for students aged six years to sixteen. Conceived in 2004 by Tower Hamlets Gifted and Talented strand of the Excellence in Cities programme, it has been run by Tower Hamlets Schools Library Service since 2011 with the aims of promoting wider reading and literacy, and to encourage young people to express themselves through the written word. Research carried out during the 2020 competition showed that pupils participating in the competition and in the author workshops benefited by gaining confidence in their writing ability and developing greater insight into the issues raised by the competition themes

We are thrilled to announce that Arts Council England has again awarded Tower Hamlets Schools Library Service with a grant to enhance our annual Creative Writing Competition with author-led creative writing workshops for schools, Idea Stores and home-educated children.

Register for the competition

This section is for schools only. Parents/ students do not need to register separately

In order to enter the competition, receive posters, entry forms and flyers, and take advantage of these free author workshops, schools need to:

enter the competition by “buying” it via SLAonline (Creative Writing Competition 2021)
email jacob.turner@towerhamlets.gov.uk letting us know who is to lead on running this event in your school.
use the form below to book your workshops

The grant also enables us to produce a book of the winning entries.

The competition judges

The two judges for this year’s competition

Ken Wilson-Max is a writer and illustrator. born and raised in Zimbabwe he has been nominated for the Astrid Lingren Memorial Award (ALMA) 2021 and the Carnegie & Kate Greenaway Awards 2019. In 2020 he was winner of the STEAM AWARD for Early Years picturebooks.
Currently working on the book ‘Grandma’s Hair’, Ken is well known for ‘Astro Girl’ and the ‘Lenny and Wilbur’ series.
Ken will be judging the poems and stories from children in years 1 to 4.

Polly Ho-Yen writes stories rooted in reality but with science fiction and other fantastical elements. Most well known for ‘The Boy in the Tower’, Polly’s other books are ‘Where Monsters Lie’ and ‘Fly me Home’ (both nominated for the Carnegie medal), ‘My Other Life’, and ‘Two Sides’ for younger children.

Polly will be judging the poems and stories from children in years 5 and up.

Author Workshops

Arts Council England provided a grant to fund writing workshops for pupils taking part in the competition. They were offered to all age groups to support their writing.

Approaching the theme

The Theme, ideas and writing advice

‘I am not alone’

Writers may interpret this theme in any way they wish. A selection of prompts and ideas are listed below, but you don’t need to use one of these.

Story choices

What genre and style do you want to write in? Genres include; Adventure, Mystery, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Romance, Horror?
Who are the main characters and what are they doing in the story?
Because we don’t have long to get involved in your story – how do you make the reader interested in the characters or their situations?
If it’s a poem, what sort of poem is it? Is it in rhyme, a narrative poem? Is it meant to be read aloud?

Here are some narrative ideas that fit around the theme. Many of them can be adapted for different age-groups, though some will be more suitable for older writers.

Linking to current events

Covid and lockdown

isolation and being/ feeling as though you’re alone
Supporting and helping others – being there for someone who needs help
Letting people know that they don’t have to cope alone

Brexit

Globalisation and being part of an interconnected world
Taking sides, argument and polarisation

Protest, including Black Lives Matter

Being part of a movement and a force for change
Identity and self
Affecting change – can lots of people together start a movement to make things better?
Fighting back, challenging others and standing up for your ideals
Being protected – having others on your side

Friendship and friends

There are lots of stories based around friendship!
Finding friends and making new friends
Needing to seek help from our friends
Loneliness and losing friends
Having an imaginary friend – what do they get up to?
Pets and faithful animals

Sometimes we can achieve more when we’re not alone…

Affecting change – can lots of people together start a movement to make things better?
Politics – democracy and voting
Protest and activism
Fighting back, challenging others and standing up for your ideals
Being protected – having others on your side

Global issues

Can we ever be alone in a connected world?
Having responsibility for others, whoever they are
Interdependence – understanding how people, wherever and whoever they are in the world, are connected.

Aliens, the unknown and the supernatural

Are we alone in the universe?
Ghosts, the afterlife and being haunted

Other groups

Many animals live in packs, and would not survive alone.
Sports team require people to work together – can you write a sports story?

Families and communities

Lots of stories are about families and communities (the good things and the bad things!)
We don’t often get to choose our family or the community we live in
Expectations – how are we shaped by our family and community? How many choices do we have?
Change due to new arrivals in the family

Sometimes ‘more’ isn’t better…

‘Ganging up’ on someone and being part of a gang
Herd mentality and not thinking for yourself – if you’re not alone, do you sometimes just go along with the crowd?
Sometimes lots of people can be persuaded to do the wrong thing…
Threatening others, or being threatened

Not being alone and wishing to be alone

Sometimes the problem is other people!
“Hell is other people” : Jean-Paul Sartre. Are we trapped by other people’s judgements of ourselves?
Being trapped with others
Unwanted attention – being chased, followed or stalked
Being watched and under observation

Religion, belonging and faith

Are you ever really alone if you have belief in a god or gods?
Does being part of a religion mean you have less personal choice?
Having a guardian angel

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Writing resource links

Links to BBC Bitesize resources on story writing

The Prizes

Prizes up to £50 for the winners in each category plus a copy of the book

The Competition

In 2021 there will be 5 age groups in the competition:

Group 1 : Years 1 & 2
Group 2 : Years 3 & 4
Group 3 : Years 5 & 6
Group 4 : Years 7 to 9
Group 5 : Years 10 & 11

Entries

Emailing your work

Important note to all entrants.

Please do not send links to your work on Google Docs or other cloud networks as we can’t always access these.
Entries by email MUST be an attached file.

Write a short story up to 500 words (Primary) and 750 words (Secondary)
- may also be an illustrated story or comic book
Write a poem or verse story up to 25 lines (Primary) and 35 lines (Secondary)
Poems and stories must follow the competition theme

Pupils may enter both the short story and poetry categories. The competition deadline is Friday 28th May 2021. Entrants should complete their work in time in order for it to reach the Schools Library Service by this date.

Entries should be :

emailed to : jacob.turner@towerhamlets.gov.uk as an attachment. Please do not send links to Google Docs or similar cloud storage OR
posted to : Tower Hamlets Schools Library Services, PDC, 229 Bethnal Green Road, E2 6AB
and must include the information below.

Writer’s name (including surname! Entries that can’t be traced to the correct pupil will be disqualified)
Year group (age if home schooled)
School (parents’/ carers’ contact email if home schooled)
Class teacher/ English teacher (parent’s/ carer’s name if home schooled)
The category being entered (select from below)

Years 1 & 2 Short Story / Poetry
Years 3 & 4 Short Story / Poetry
Years 5 & 6 Short Story / Poetry
Years 7 to 9 Short Story / Poetry
Years 10 and 11 Short Story / Poetry

Title of work (untitled winning entries will be given a title by the competition judges)

Rules

All entries must be received by the Schools Library Services by Friday 28th May 2021.

Prize Giving: Monday 19th July at Clifford Chance, Canary Wharf (relaxation of social distancing rules permitting)

Content

Entries must be appropriate to the theme!
Entries should not be adaptations/ sequels to other writers’ or poets’ published work (including stories, comic books or films), however alternative versions of fairy tales/ myths and legends will be accepted.
Entries must not use existing characters from published work (e.g. Wimpy Kid, Big Nate, Dennis the Menace, Harry Potter), including illustrations. This constitutes a breach of copyright and these entries cannot be published.
All entries must be the entrant’s own work, including all illustrations. All work shortlisted for a prize will be thoroughly checked and plagiarised writing and artwork will be disqualified. Please remind your pupils that copying work isn’t allowed! This happens ludicrously often. Seriously – even if someone pirates a film they don’t then try to claim that they directed it. Stop it. It’s not big and it’s not clever.

Boring but important

Entries can be cooperative efforts. Any prizes will be split equally between the named entrants.
Entries without entrant’s full name, school name and competition category will not be eligible for judging.
Each page should have the entrant’s full name written clearly on it
Entries must be written or typed on one side of the page only
Work should be in black or blue ink or text on white paper
No decorative fonts unless they directly contribute to the writing/ storytelling
If you are illustrating your work, all artwork must be in black and white for consideration for the printed book
We will contact all winners via their school (or parents/ carers if home schooled) in May.
Work will not be automatically returned to entrants but can be collected on request after the competition closes. The Schools Library Services can take no responsibility for lost or damaged work.

Privacy notice

Commended and winning entries to be published in eBook and print formats. By entering the competition, entrants are giving permission for their work (including their name) to be published and distributed in these formats, and all supplied information including name and contact details to be held by the Tower Hamlets Schools Library Services. Copyright on poems and stories will remain with the author(s). Supplied information, including names and contact details, of competition entrants who do not win prizes will not be stored beyond the duration of the event.

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08/07/2021

Junior Poetry Slam 2021

11 schools competed for prizes over two slams on Thursday 10th June.

Junior Slambassadors is brought to your schools in partnership with The Poetry Society, with support from Amal Fund of the Said Foundation and Samuel Butler Educational Foundation.

The Junior Slam places poets-in-residence within schools to coach pupils not just in writing poetry, but in group and solo performance.

Due to Covid, the events had to be held online, but the amazing Kat Francois made it feel like a live event as the emcee.

More info about Junior Slambassadors
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Performances and awards!

Videos of the schools’ performances will be linked to here as soon as we receive permission forms!

Morning Finale

Best Poem : Harbinger School – Oma Umo
“say my name in a hundred different ways”
“I am black, I am white, a million shades”
“I am me and that is enough”

Best individual Performance : Osmani School – Ayaan R

Best Line : Cayley School – Ra’Eesa

“My religion (Islam) is as peaceful as the blazing orange sunset, reflecting on the transparent ocean.”

Best Group Performance : St Saviours School – Olivia, Emmanuella, Shyamak, Joel, Aliana, Finley, Ejaz, Daniella, Alysa, Sumlina

Outstanding Effort for individual and group performances : Woolmore School

Best Support : St Pauls Whitechapel

Afternoon finale

Best Poem : St John’s School (Group Poem)

Best individual Performance : Hermitage School – Cuillin

Best Line : Lansbury Lawrence School (Kahlo class) – Imeteyez
“it’s still fresh cos it’s desh – my freshie blood is fresher than fresh water lakes”

Best Group Performance : Lansbury Lawrence School (Lichtenstein Class)

Outstanding Effort : Thomas Buxton School (Group poem)

Best Support : William Davis School
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15/06/2021
Ken Wilson-Max on World Book Day
Ken Wilson-Max, author and illustrator, was our headline act for World Book Day 2020. Ken did a session of stories, talks and live drawing for classes in schools.

Born in Zimbabwe and now living in London, Ken trained as a graphic designer before developing his storytelling and creative writing skills. More recently he has embarked on publishing too, because he wanted to do something about the need for children from all backgrounds to see themselves in books.

He had quite an exciting 2020:
- He’s gained a nomination for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award
- Won the STEAM AWARD for Early Years picture books
- Is on the World Book Day Steering Committee and on the Board of Directors of the Association of Illustrators
- Has been invited to be a judge for the Wales Book of the Year 2020
- And in partnership with United Nations and Govt of Zimbabwe launched “17Promises” magazine, about taking action on the sustainable development goals of the UN.
This event was kindly supported by Canary Wharf Group and all schools who subscribe to the Schools Library Service received a free signed copy of Ken’s award winning book “Astro Girl” and a copy of “Stars with Flaming Tails” a book of poetry by Valerie Bloom that he has illustrated, published this month

We had lots of Astro Girl inspired artwork sent to us! Thank you all for taking part on the day.
27/01/2021
Creative Writing Competition : submit your entry
So you’ve written your story and poem, now it’s time to send it in!

You can enter as many stories and poems as you like. You can send revisions (if you send something in and decide to make an edit) – if you do this, we’ll enter the latest version of the story or poem.

The 2026 competition has now CLOSED
Online entry form

Important : Who is the competition open to?

The Tower Hamlets Creative Writing Competition is open to:

Users of the Tower Hamlets Idea Stores (may attend any Tower Hamlets school or be home-educated)

Pupils at schools which have registrered for the competition with the Tower Hamlets Schools Library Servcies

Important : What file formats can I send?

The competition has now CLOSED.

If you sent us a Google Drive link, please read the instructions below and re-send the entry or entries by 1st April.

Anything recieved after this date will be disqualified.

If you’re sending files, please only use one of the following formats:

.doc/.docx files

.txt files

.pdf for scanned work

.gif/.jpg/.png for illustrated work that needed to be scanned or photographed

Please do not send:

.pages files or other formats only readable on Apple devices

.HEIC files (only readable on Apple devices)

Google drive or other cloud links (we can’t always access these)

If we can’t access your work, it wont be read!

Entry form (individual entries)

The competition is now closed for entries. We’ll be informing winners as soon as the judging process is completed (expected late May/ eraly June) and posting the full list at www.towerhamlets-sls.org.uk/cwc26

Please don’t email us asking when winners will be announced – you’ll just be sent the above paragraph!

Entry instructions for teachers

If you’re sending lots of entries from your class/ writing groups, please email or use WeTransfer

email address : jacob.turner@towerhamlets.gov.uk

Deliver to : Schools Library Services, The Shapla Centre, 19 Ensign Street, London E1 8JD
Entries must reach Tower Hamlets Schools Library Services by 27th March 2026

The following must be written on the first page of all entries

Pupil name (including surname!)

School

Year group

Category (Story or Poem)

The title of the work (must not be ‘Lost and Found’ – if there’s no title we’ll choose something appropriate!)

Important

We can accept the following:

.doc/.docx files

.txt

.pdf for scanned work

.gif/.jpg/.png for illustrated work that needed to be scanned or photographed

We can’t accept:

.pages files, .heic files or other formats only readable on Apple devices

Your google drive/ DropBox/ Cloud links (we can’t always access these as they’re password locked or need permissions)

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For prompts and ideas to start your writing, visit www.towerhamlets-sls.org.uk/getwriting/

Competition Rules

All entries must be received by the Schools Library Services by 27th March 2026

Prize Giving: September 2026 (date TBC)

Content
- Entries must be appropriate to the theme!
- Entries should not be adaptations of, or sequels to other writers’ or poets’ original published work (such as stories, comic books, games or films), however alternative versions of fairy tales/myths and legends will be accepted.
- Entries must not use existing characters from published work (e.g. Wimpy Kid, Big Nate, Dennis the Menace, Harry Potter, Marvel/ DC characters), including illustrations.
- All entries must be the entrant’s own work, including all illustrations. All work shortlisted for a prize will be thoroughly checked and plagiarised writing and artwork will be disqualified.
Plagiarism/ AI

We screen all work and will disqualify any work that is plagiarised or AI generated- either copied and pasted directly from the internet or from other sources

Examples of plagiarism
- Submitting song lyrics as poems
- Submitting verses/ lines from other peoples’ poems, even if you mix them with original verses.
- Copying entire stories and poems by other writers
- Tracing/ copying artwork by other artists
- Making use of characters from other published work (unless out of copyright)
Boring but important
- Entries can be co-operative efforts. Any main prizes will be split equally between the named entrants.
- Entries without entrant’s full name, school name and year group and competition category will not be eligible for judging.
- Each page of printed work should have the entrant’s name written clearly on it
- Entries must be written or typed on one side of the page only
- Work should be in black or blue ink or text on white paper
- No decorative fonts unless they directly contribute to the writing/storytelling
- If you are illustrating your work, any colour artwork will be converted to black and white for the printed book
- Bound/ stapled/ mounted work may be taken apart in order to scan to send to the authors
- We will contact all winners via their school (or parents/carers if home schooled) in May/ June
- Work will not be automatically returned to entrants but can be collected on request after the competition closes. Entries will not be kept beyond October 2026 and the Schools Library Services can take no responsibility for lost or damaged work.
- The judges’ decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.
Privacy notice

Commended and winning entries to be published in eBook and print formats. By entering the Tower Hamlets Creative Writing Competition, entrants are giving permission for their work (including their name and school) to be published and distributed in these formats, and all supplied information including name and contact details to be held by the Tower Hamlets Schools Library Services. Copyright on poems and stories will remain with the author(s). Supplied information, including names and contact details, of competition entrants who do not win prizes will not be stored beyond the duration of the event.

We reserve the right to edit any work (writing or illustration) for spelling, grammar or composition.

Entrants may request that any work or personal information to be published in print be removed or edited prior to the publication being sent to print and no later than 4pm on 24th July 2026

Entrants may request that any work or personal information published electronically (online or as an eBook) be removed or edited at any time.

To request changes to any information provided, please email schoolslibraryservices@towerhamlets.gov.uk
03/01/2021
Tower Hamlets Book Award 2020
Well done Remy Lai!

Tower Hamlets Book Award Grand Finale

Pie in the Sky by Remy Lai was voted the winning book of the Tower Hamlets Book Award 2020. Hundreds of pupils cast their votes online and Remy was one of the 7 guest authors and illustrators present at the finale to receive the news. Remy had joined us online from Australia despite it being rather late over there!

Pie in the Sky was one of the 3 books being performed by schools for our annual presentation competition. Blue Gate Fields Juniors had filmed a wonderful piece for the event with some amazing masks – and they had a special Book Award cake, too!

Also presenting were Virginia School with an amazing film trailer for Fire Girl, Forest Boy and Thomas Buxton School with a dramatization of Anna at War. Both the schools viewing and the authors scored the presentations and Virginia School were the proud winners.

Lots of children sent in artwork and writing based on the books for the art competition, and images are below.

The grand Finale was presented in partnership with East Wintergarden and Canary Wharf Group, and we’d like to thank all of their team for all of the IT and AV setup and for the video mixing on the day.

Book Award Quiz:

If you missed the quiz – see how you do with the questions that were set by the authors on the day.

The score to beat is 8!
1. What is Yanghao’s favorite sauce in Pie in the Sky?
2. What is the name of Anna’s cat in Pie in the Sky?
3. What was Camilla’s father’s profession in Empire’s End?
4. What was the year 193 AD in Rome famous for (Empire’s End)?
5. In Anna at War, what does the man in the barn pretend is his name?
6. In Anna at War, how many words is Anna allowed to write in the Red Cross letters she sends to her parents?
7. Where do lobsters do a wee from (Anisha, accidental detective)?
8. Who dresses up as Elvis Presley in the first Anisha book?
9. What is the name of the Agouti Paca in Fire Girl Forest Boy?
10. What is the name of the fish in the Amazon that can swim up inside you if you wee into the river (Fire Girl, Forest Boy)? a Candiru fish b – Piranha c – Armoured cat fish
11. What is the name of Nik and Norva’s dog?
12. Which number flat (and which Corner) do Nik and Norva live in?
Answers at the bottom of the page!

About the Book Award

The annual Tower Hamlets Book Award is just one of the exciting events made possible through subscriptions to the Tower Hamlets Schools Library Services.

The Book Award is for pupils aged 10 to 13. The aim is to encourage children to read, to bring children together to enable debate and discussion about books and to encourage children to share the pleasure of reading.

Scroll down for information on:
- The Shortlisted books
- The finale
- The art competition
- [media-downloader media_id=”67851″ texts=”Download the shortlist PowerPoint”]
- [media-downloader media_id=”67850″ texts=”Download Book Award guidelines”]
The Shortlist

We’ve got an awesome shortlist this year, and all subscribing schools will get a free set of these books courtesy of Canary Wharf Group

Please note, that due to Covid, delivery of these books has been delayed, however we hope to dispatch them to you from 14th September.
- Fire Girl, Forest Boy by Chloe Daykin
- High Rise Mystery by Sharna Jackson
- Pie in the Sky by Remy Lai
- Anisha, Accidental Detective by Serena Patel
- Anna at War by Helen Peters
- Empire’s End by Leila Rasheed
Additional sets of the 6 books will also be on sale from us at a discounted price (see below). Please email jacob.turner@towerhamlets.gov.uk to order.

Pie in the Sky is currently awaiting reprinting and we are sourcing copies where we can. Free sets will contain all six books. Purchased sets that do not have this book will be priced at £30, or £40 with all 6 books.

Art Competition

Well done to all the winners of the art competition – prizes will be on their way!

Download [2.24 MB]

Please get in touch if any names in the slideshow are incorrect.
Quiz Answers…
Caramel

Ginger

Doctor or Surgeon

It was a chaotic and dangerous time of civil war , known as the year of five Emperors.

Peter Smith

25

From their faces

Uncle Ricky

Steven

Candiru Fish

Ringo

Flat 221, corner 1
14/07/2020