Roger McGough to host LIVE online announcement of the 2025 CLiPPA shortlist
CLPE, the National Poetry Centre for Primary Schools, has revealed that chair of this year’s CLiPPA judges, Roger McGough will host a live online event to announce the shortlist for this year’s CLiPPA (CLPE Children’s Poetry Award). All schools in the UK are invited to attend the event which will take place at 2.15pm on Wednesday 23 April.
The CLiPPA is the UK’s leading award for published poetry for children and past winners include Carol Ann Duffy, John Agard, Jackie Kay, Joseph Coelho and recently Michael Rosen and Valerie Bloom. Matt Goodfellow, also a judge this year, was awarded the 2024 CLiPPA for his acclaimed verse novel, The Final Year.
Guests at the special virtual event will include shortlisted poets who will perform poems from their collections.
To receive their invitation, all schools need to do is to register for this year’s CLiPPA Shadowing Scheme.
As the National Poetry Centre for Primary Schools, CLPE works to embed poetry fully both in classrooms and in children’s reading for pleasure choices. The unique CLiPPA Shadowing Scheme enables schools to explore the shortlist with their pupils, looking at the poems in depth and creating live performances of individual favourites. CLPE provide specially created support materials for teachers, including videos of the shortlisted poets. The resources are supplied free to schools when they register to take part. Each year the Shadowing Scheme prompts poetry performances in hundreds of classrooms.
Rebecca Eaves, Chief Executive, CLPE said, ‘40,000 children were involved in the CLiPPA Shadowing last year, and it reaches into classrooms across the country. We know that they will be excited to join this year’s announcement, which launches the hugely popular CLiPPA Shadowing scheme. Roger and his fellow judges have selected a shortlist that, in Roger’s words, is ‘full of magic’, and we can’t wait for the Shadowing to open.’
The winner of the 2025 CLiPPA will be announced at the CLiPPA Poetry Show, live onstage at the National Theatre, Friday 20 June. Shadowing schools will be invited to attend this special in-person event, with the Shadowing Scheme winners performing live onstage alongside the shortlisted poets.
Schools can sign up to register their interest in the CLiPPA Shadowing Scheme here.
