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Reminder – Stephen Spender Prize

Stephen Spender Prize for poetry in translation 2024 | 2 weeks left to submit!

Calling budding poetry translators of all ages! Just 2 weeks left to submit to the 2024 Stephen Spender Prize for poetry in translation. Translate ANY published poem from ANY language into English, and win publication and cash prizes!

The Prize welcomes entries from young people aged 18 and under from across the UK and Ireland, with categories for individual young people and teachers submitting on behalf of pupils, plus a special Portuguese Spotlight celebrating poetry from across the Lusophone world. Teachers from participating schools are also warmly invited to try their hand at poetry translation with the free-to-enter Teacher Laureate Prize, for the chance to win a subscription to Modern Poetry in Translation magazine and a creative translation workshop for their school.

This year, the Stephen Spender Trust is also delighted to extend the Open category to adults aged 18+ from all over the world, welcoming submissions from higher education students, academics and poetry and language lovers of all stripes. 

The winning translations will be chosen by Taher Adel, Jennifer Wong and Keith Jarrett, with publication and cash prizes for the winners, plus special certificates for up to 30 Commendees in each age category. Outstanding Teacher Commendations will also be awarded to three individual teachers and/or language departments who show exceptional engagement with the prize.

For full details and a wealth of poetry translation resources, including the Stephen Spender Trust’s Guide to the Prize for Teachers, head to the Stephen Spender Prize homepage: www.stephen-spender.org/stephen-spender-prize/.

You can also follow the latest Prize news on social media, using the hashtags #SSTPoetryPrize2024 and #PortugueseSpotlight. (X: @StephenSpender | Facebook: @StephenSpenderTrust | Instagram: @stephenspendertrust)

Stephen Spender Prize 2024

Calling MFL, EAL and English teachers! Bring creative translation into the classroom this summer with the Stephen Spender Prize 2024

The Stephen Spender Prize is an annual competition for poetry in translation, with strands for pupils, teachers and individual young people, as well as a special rotating Spotlight highlighting a language widely spoken in the UK. The competition is open for entries from 1 May to 31 July and is free to enter for all schools and teachers in the UK and Ireland.

Whether you’re an MLF, EAL or English teacher, and whatever the languages taught and spoken in your school community, the prize is a perfect way to engage students of all ages this summer term.

Teachers are invited to register here to receive classroom inspiration and activity ideas throughout the prize window, and you can follow all the latest news on our website and social media channels. (X: @StephenSpender| Facebook: @StephenSpenderTrust | Instagram: @stephenspendertrust)

Here’s a list of the categories for 2024:

Ready to start planning and working on your entries? Head to our Guide for Teachers for all the key information about the prize at a glance, explore our Bank of Suggested Poems for poem inspiration, and find poetry workshops, worksheets, lesson plans and more in our Prize Resources hub.

To help you spread the word ahead of the launch, you can also download a free Stephen Spender Prize 2024 poster to display around your school, sixth form or university buildings.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email us at prize@stephen-spender.org. We hope that many of you and your students will get involved!

Stephen Spender Prize 2023

This week, we pass over to our friends at the Stephen Spender Trust to tell us about their 2023 prize for poetry in translation.

Translate ANY poem from ANY language into English, and win publication and cash prizes! Language lovers and budding poets of all ages are warmly invited to take part in the Stephen Spender Prize for poetry in translation, open to adults aged 19+ from all over the world, as well as to individual young people and school pupils in the UK and Ireland and students at British Schools Overseas.

For 2023 there will also be a special language focus with the Ukrainian Spotlight strand, open to all young people in the UK and Ireland aged 18 and under.

The deadline to submit entries is 14th July.

Details:

Entrants are invited to submit an English translation of a published poem from any language, ancient or modern, together with a commentary of no more than 300 words. The translation should be max. 60 lines (extracts are accepted). All forms and genres are welcome, including texts from rap, spoken word and slam poetry. We also welcome translations from sign language.

Prize strands:

  • International Open Entry (NEW FOR 2023) – For adults aged 19+ from all over the world.
  • Individual Youth Entry – For individual young people in the UK and Ireland or attending British schools overseas. Two age categories: 14-and-under; 18-and-under.
  • Schools Laureate Prize (NEW FOR 2023) – For teachers submitting on behalf of their students, open to schools in the UK and Ireland and British schools overseas. Four categories for pupils from KS1 to KS5.
  • Ukrainian Spotlight (NEW FOR 2023) – For young people in the UK and Ireland or at British schools overseas. Entries can be submitted individually or by teachers on behalf of students. Three age categories: KS1-2, KS3-4 and KS5.
  • Teacher Laureate Prize (NEW FOR 2023) – Free to enter for all teachers at schools that have entered pupils for the Schools Laureate or Ukrainian Spotlight strands.

Judges:

Open category: Taher Adel, Jennifer Wong, Samantha Schnee
Youth categories (Individual Youth Entry and Schools Laureate Prize): Keith Jarrett
Ukrainian Spotlight: Nina Murray

Prizes:

  • Open Entry: £1000 (1st), £500 (2nd), £250 (3rd)
  • Individual Youth Entry, Schools Laureate Prize and Ukrainian Spotlight: Cash prizes of up to £100 for the winners in each age category.
  • Teacher Laureate Prize: Annual print subscription to Modern Poetry in Translation for the winning teacher, plus a Stephen Spender Prize workshop for their school during the next academic year.

All winners will have their translations published in our 2023 prize booklet and will be invited to participate in our livestreamed awards ceremony in the autumn. The winner of the Open category will also be published in Modern Poetry in Translation.

In each age category we will additionally reward three Highly Commended entrants and up to 30 Commendees, as well as three special First-Time Entrant Commendations in the Open category.  

Entry Fee: 

Open category: £10 per translated poem, or £5 per additional poem in the same submission.
Youth and teacher categories: Free

Further details: 

Full information on how to enter can be found on the Stephen Spender Prize homepage and the different category subpages.

For a wealth of poetry translation inspiration, including advice for those trying poetry translation for the first-time, explore our Guide to Poetry Translation for Newcomers, the archive of tutorials and testimonials on the Stephen Spender Trust YouTube channel, and the multilingual bank of suggested poems for translation in our Prize Resources hub.

Good luck to all entrants!