Shepton Snowdrops Poetry Competiton 2026

 Full details 

THEME: IN THE GARDEN

To enter the competition use link below

The prize giving ceremony for the competitions will take place in the town centre (venue to be confirmed) on Saturday 21st February 2026 at 2pm.

PRIZE FOR 3 CATEGORIES 

18 & Over – £300

12 to 17 – £100

11 & Under – £50

WE’RE DELIGHTED TO WELCOME BACK WENDY PRATT AS OUR JUDGE FOR 2025 

Wendy is a published author and poet living on the North Yorkshire coast. Her latest poetry collection, Blackbird Singing at Dusk, was published in November 2024. She has won or been placed in many competitions, and her work is widely published in magazines and anthologies.

Speaking about what she hopes to see for 2026, Wendy said:

“I want to see poems that explore more than the patch of grass at the front or back of your home. I want you to tell me how you connect through your own garden, or what the public gardens of your town or city say to you. I want you to explore the concept of the garden: is a garden a scaled down model of a wild space? Is a garden a place to feed a family? Is a garden a chance to take the ecological crisis into your own hands? Think about how you might surprise me. Can a garden be a metaphor? Can a garden be aware of itself, of you? If a garden spoke, what might its voice sound like? Come to the garden with your senses open. What does the garden sound like or smell like? What does the soil feel like under your fingernails? Enjoy and good luck!“

RULES ABOUT ENTRY

All entries are accepted in good faith.

The poems must be your own original work and not have been published before or currently entered in any other competition.

We want to read poems created from your own imaginations and hard work, please do not use AI in any way to generate your poems.

Copyright remains with you but we reserve the right to reproduce the poems in print and digital form to publicise and promote the competition and the Festival.

No single piece of work, or entrant can win more than one prize.

Your poem(s) must be no more than 30 lines long.

Entrants agree to indemnify the judges, organisers, and any other related parties against any litigation that may arise should the poems entered not have the necessary permission to be published.

We reserve the right to update and amend these rules at any time, but only if necessary; any changes will be posted on this website.

The judge’s decision is final.

HOW TO ENTER

The entry fee is £4 per poem for age ’18 & Over’, and free of charge for under 18s.

Over 18s can submit up to five poems, under 18s one poem.

Entrants can enter poems from any country in the world, but they must be written in English.

You can write your poems in any format – haiku, sonnet, blank verse etc., but they must be relevant to the theme. The organisers reserve the right to disqualify any entries they consider to be not relevant to the theme.

Registration, entry and any payment due must be completed online through our official competition platform Skor.ie.

Poems are now entered as text on the website, rather than as a file.  You can format your text once it has been entered.

The competition is judged anonymously, so please don’t add your name, address or any other identifier to your poem.

Your entry should have a unique title and your initials in the filename e.g. “Morning Splendour – AS”.

Deadline for entry is 11pm on Sunday 4 January 2026.  

Registration, entry and any payment due must be completed online through our official competition platform Skor.ie