CLPE, the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education, aka the National Poetry Centre for Primary Schools, has announced that ‘patron saint of poetry’, Roger McGough CBE, will chair the 2025 judging panel for the CLiPPA, (CLPE Poetry Award), the UK’s foremost award for published poetry for children.

Roger McGough first chaired the award in 2015, when he criticised the lack of poetry books being published for children. Now, ten years on, poetry for children is booming and over twenty different publishers submitted new collections for this year’s CLiPPA while a recent report (National Literacy Trust 2024) revealed children’s appetite for poetry to be at the highest levels ever and with young fans finding it makes the world a better place.

Roger McGough says, “I have been close to the CLiPPA for many years, and for good reason: the energy, commitment and passion that goes into all that it does, i.e. literacy in schools and spreading the good word about the value of good words. I am delighted to be part of a judging panel that will choose the annual award from a shortlist representing poetry aimed at children of all ages. I have put on my wig and gown, read a few books, and already I am hooked, enthralled and impatient to meet up with my fellow judges. Poetry for kids, bring it on!”

Who are the CiPPA 2025 judges?

McGough is joined on the panel by Lucy Bannerman, children’s books editor The Times; playwright and Marketing Manager at writing and educational charity First Story, Annette Brook; teacher Saira Bano; and fellow poet Matt Goodfellow, who won the CLiPPA in 2024 with his acclaimed verse novel, The Final Year.

Established in 2003, the CLiPPA highlights the best new poetry for children. Past winners include Michael Rosen, John Agard, Jackie Kay, Valerie Bloom and former Waterstones Children’s Laureate Joseph Coelho. Roger McGough himself won the award in 2004 and 2005.

The CLiPPA Shadowing Scheme 2025

Over 40,000 children are expected to take part in the CLiPPA Shadowing Scheme 2025.

CLPE’s unique and much-praised CLiPPA Shadowing Scheme brings the poets and poetry on each year’s shortlist into classrooms across the UK. It invites teachers to choose one of the collections shortlisted for the CLiPPA and share it with their pupils, using dedicated teaching sequences produced by CLPE including videos of the poets performing their work. Children choose a favourite poem from a shortlisted collection to work up into a performance, which is recorded and sent to a CLPE judging panel. Winning schools are then invited to perform live at the award ceremony at the National Theatre. CLPE estimate that over 40,000 children were involved in the CLiPPA in 2024 and that even more will participate in 2025.

The 2025 CLiPPA Shadowing Scheme is now open for registration

The 2025 CLiPPA Shadowing is now open for registration here and schools are invited to join CLPE online on 23 April to watch the live announcement of the shortlist, with poetry performances by shortlisted poets. The 2025 award ceremony will be held at the National Theatre on Friday 20 June.

Rebecca Eaves, CLPE’s Chief Executive, says, “We are delighted that Roger is returning as a judge in 2025 and proud there is such an abundance of new poetry to read. Our work with primary schools and research with teachers shows that when taught with confidence and enjoyment, poetry reaches children in ways other literary forms do not (Poetry In Primary Schools 2023). We can’t wait to share the judge's shortlist with teachers and children across the country.”

The CLiPPA is delivered in partnership with the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS) and supported by Arts Council England. The Week Junior are media partner.

For further information about the award and the shadowing scheme please visit https://www.clpe.org.uk/poetry

@clpe1
#CLiPPA2025