Congratulations to Lower Fifth pupil Immy, who has won the Solstice Writing Prize 2024 in the 15-17 years category. This was her first time entering the competition.

The Solstice Writing Prize is a national, annual writing competition, which invites young people to take a closer look at the natural world, explore their relationship with it, or examine the challenges it faces and write short stories, poems and thought-provoking blogs in response. 

The competition was judged by Gill Lewis, a multi-award-winning and best-selling author of novels including Sky Hawk, Sky Dancer, White Dolphin, and A Story Like the Wind.

Regarding Immy’s poem titled “Spider’s Web”, Gill said, “This piece of writing is a beautiful and lyrical description of a spider’s web; revealing the beauty, complexity, strength and function, as made by the ‘revered creator’ - the ‘obsidian widow, the glistening huntsman’. The narrator sees their own fragile life reflected in this - leaving the reader to reflect upon the deeper meanings within the poem."

Speaking about her inspiration for the poem she said, “I wrote it in October when I saw a spider's web on a crisp, autumn morning as I was walking around school.” Read her award winning entry here.