On Friday 12th July, Aspire2 and WEC ran their annual Poetry Competition.  This is the fourth year the event has taken place, and every time it gets bigger!  The event was hosted by the University in the prestigious Henley Business School.

The competition is in two parts, submission of poems that the children have written themselves and a performance competition.

Prior to the event on Friday the wining pupils who had been successful in their school competitions, submitted poems for judging by Paul Lyalls, a published poet.  The winners received their award at the event and were able to read out their poem to the audience.

• Early Years:  Geoffrey Field Infant Nursery
• Key Stage 1, Ridgeway Primary had joint winners : Theodora with ‘Trees’ and Gabriella with ‘Books’
• Key Stage 2 lower, Christ the King : Kayley ‘Without You’
• Key Stage 2 upper, Ridgeway Primary: Aleena ‘Tomatoes’
• Key Stage 3, JMA,  Roxanne ‘Fake Friends’
• Key Stage 4, JMA, Linnea, ‘Fairest Option’

All poems submitted were printed by The John Madejski Academy in an anthology of poetry and copies were given to those who had submitted poems for judging.

Paul Lyalls, hosted and judged the performance event on Friday along with Georgina Da Silva, Outreach officer at the University.  Jan Gavin, Trustee of Aspire2 was also a judge for the early years section of the competition.

Pictures of the event can be found here.

280 children and adults attended the event from the following schools:

• Blagdon Nursery
• New Christchurch Primary
• Christ the King Primary
• Geoffrey Field Infant School
• Geoffrey Field Junior School
• The Ridgeway Primary
• Whitley Park Primary and
• The John Madejski Academy

We were delighted that so many parents attended to see their stars perform, over 40 parents and younger brothers and sisters attended over the day.