The honouring of Saint David’s Day with an Eisteddfod style Whole School Poetry competition is a well-loved tradition at Leweston. Poems are entered under a Bardic name (pen name) and tension runs high during the prize giving. The winner of this year’s incredibly tough contest was Ava T (Year 12) with her poem, ‘Tartarus’, an uncompromising view of women forced to negate their identities. Runner-up was Dominiqe P (Year 12) with ‘Love Like Oxygen’ a thoughtful take on the dangers of dependency in relationships.
Since 2024, the prize-giving has incorporated recognition of those students selected to represent Leweston in the Independent School Association’s annual Poetry Writing contest. Only three poems in each category can be selected to go forward and again, this was an incredibly tough task. This year’s title, ‘My Life as’…, elicited an inspiring range of responses which dug deep into the essential and figurative qualities of water, paper, appetite and corporate greed to name but a few. Students selected were Tom P, Molly M, and Georgia F (Year 7-9); and Imogen B, Dominiqe P and Alice M (Year 10-13).
We are absolutely delighted to announce that Georgia F won First Place in the Year 7-9 category of the ISA Poetry Competition 2025 with: ‘My Life as a Statue’. In this outstanding poem, Georgia’s central metaphor of a sculpture underpins her meditation on the strictures of ‘ideal femininity’. Of particular note, is her skilled and powerful use of the refrain, ‘Conceal’. This simple imperative gradually accumulates in each stanza to an expression of hope. The final line, enhanced by use of caesura, urges resistance: ‘Conceal, please, perfect, conform, endure. But dream.’
The English Department would like to thank the many students who submitted entries to this year’s poetry competitions. It is always a privilege to read every single one of their poems. The original work of our students is a testament to the love of literature and creativity which we strive to nurture.
