Cheshire Prize | University of Chester

Cheshire Prize for Literature 2025/26

Cheshire Prize for Literature 2025/26 now open.

This year’s competition is open to anyone to enter in three age categories:

Primary (4-11): poetry or short story category

Secondary (11-18): poetry or short story category

Over 18: poetry, short story, flash fiction, children’s literature, scriptwriting

There is no theme, writers can write about anything that inspires them.

You can enter two entries per person, but they must be in different categories.

Closing date for entries is 31^st January 2026.

Please read the full terms and conditions for full details of the competition and to see the criteria for each category.

Enter Here

Any queries about the competition should be emailed to cheshireprize@chester.ac.uk or phone 01244 511344.

History of the Prize

In 2003, the then High Sheriff of Cheshire approached the University of Chester to establish and run a Cheshire Prize for Literature. Since then, it has grown to become one of the premier competitions in the area, fostering the literary talents of both new and established writers.

Until 2018 year it was operating on a triennial cycle of short stories, poetry and children’s literature, and the prize was open to adults with a connection to Cheshire. It is one of the few free-to-enter literary competitions and offers a cash prize for the winners, but also the opportunity for the best entries from the previous year to be published by the University of Chester Press in an anthology.

In 2019, we worked with Sir Phil Redmond to introduce a scriptwriting prize. In 2020, we introduced categories for children as we wanted to encourage creative writing at all ages. This year’s competition features four categories: short stories, poetry, children's literature, and scriptwriting.