Pupils of Thorn Grove Primary School in Bishop’s Stortford win awards at national poetry speaking competition

Poetry speaking was at the heart of a competition for English schools – and all four pupils at a Bishop’s Stortford primary who entered emerged as winners from among more than 2,000 entries.

Thorn Grove entered the Poetry By Heart contest, which saw youngsters from Key Stages 2 to 5 choosing a poem, learning it by heart and uploading a video of their performance.

There were two categories: ‘classic’, where solo entrants learned two poems (one published in or after 1914 and one from before 1914) and ‘freestyle’. The awards were: national finalist, best in county, highly commended and commended.

Organisers received more than 2,000 entries which were judged by a team of poets, poetry experts and educationalists.

All four Thorn Grove entrants received awards. Holly and Tianna (Year 5) were highly commended in the freestyle category while, in the classic category, Georgia (Y4) was highly commended and Lexie (Y6) was commended.

Deputy head Jayne Lilley said: “The children should feel very proud of themselves to achieve these results in a national competition.

“Poetry is a powerful tool for writers to express their emotions and develop confidence in an enjoyable and engaging way.”