Forum topic: Train operator launches poetry competition to get kids' imaginations back on track

The railway company whose trains serve Palmers Green has launched a poetry competition in partnership with Children’s Laureate, Joseph Coelho.

Children's Laureate Joseph Coelho will be judging the poetry competition

Run by Govia Thameslink Railway, the parent company of our local operator Great Northern, the Poetry in Motion competition is aimed at encouraging kids to step away from screens and challenge their creativity to write a short poem about a place they love to visit by train.

The competition is open to young people aged between 5 and 13 and involves writing a poem that is between 50 to 150 words long.

The theme? A place they enjoy visiting on the train with Great Northern or its sister companies Thameslink and Southern. Alternatively, a poem about where they live and want others to come and visit by train.

Ten lucky winners will have their poems displayed on trains and at stations across the GTR network - the largest in the country -  so they can be read and admired by travellers far-and-wide. They will also receive complimentary return rail travel for themselves and four family members.

Submissions are open from 25 March 2024 and close at 23:59 on 10 May 2024.

Poems will be judged by Joseph Coelho, Govia Thameslink Railway and its partner PR agency based on the below criteria:

• Language and Structure: The poem should demonstrate creative use of language and structure (25%)
• Theme: The poem should clearly identify a location on or near (less than 10km away from) the Govia Thameslink Railway network (25%)
• Creativity and Uniqueness: The poem should convey an emotive and entertaining message, where the writer’s voice clearly comes through (25%)
• Inspiration:The poem should inspire the wider public to visit the location described in the poem (25%)

Winners will be contacted between 3-14 June before the official announcement on 24 June.

Full details and to enter the competition