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Carnegies Winner Is Youngest Writer To Be Presented With The Award

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[The following copy is based on the official announcement page.]

The winners of the UK’s longest-running and highly-prestigious book awards for children and young people, The Carnegies, managed by CILIP, the library and information association, were announced earlier this week in front of an audience of over 600 young people at a live-streamed ceremony at the Cambridge Theatre, London. 

  •  27-year-old debut author Margaret McDonald was announced as the Carnegie Medal for Writing winner, the youngest in its almost ninety-year history for her “life changing and emotional” novel Glasgow Boys (Faber). This “honest” and “hopeful” story explores mental health, trauma, inequality and identity through the friendship between two boys who have grown up in foster care.  
  • The winner of the Carnegie Medal for Illustration is Olivia Lomenech Gill for Clever Crow, written by Chris Butterworth (Walker Books). This “innovative” and detailed non-fiction picture book illustrated in “earthy” watercolours, charcoal, gouache and collage encourages readers to look afresh at a fascinating, but often maligned, bird.    

Ros Harding, Chair of Judges for The Carnegies 2025, said: 

“Glasgow Boys is an immersive and visceral read that completely draws the reader into the present and past lives of Finlay and Banjo. It is a book that will stay in the minds of the reader long after finishing it. Clever Crow is full of stunning, innovative and detailed illustrations that elevate this fascinating non-fiction book into something even more special that demands reading over and over again. Congratulations to the 2025 winning authors and illustrators and a huge thanks to the judging panel who give up so much time and energy for these awards. Thanks also to all the young readers who took part in the Shadowing programme and to the teachers and librarians who support them in discovering the very best of writing and illustration for young people.” 

Scottish author Margaret McDonald formerly worked for the NHS and started writing Glasgow Boys when she was a student. She has weaved her own experience of Crohn’s Disease and pain medication dependency after bowel surgery into Glasgow Boys,as well as drawing on her working-class background and experiences of being a first-generation university student. McDonald worked with a care experienced children’s therapist to ensure her depiction of the care system was authentic. The judges praised her “sensitive” and “emotionally honest” exploration of the lack of support young people get when leaving care, which is balanced with a message of “hope” for the future offered by the boys’ friendship. Featuring Scots dialect, Glasgow Boys is a homage to McDonald’s vibrant, multicultural hometown, with judges describing the setting as “very well realised and explored” and “a real reflection of how our world is”. Margaret McDonald will be donating her prize money to Action for Children, one of the UK’s leading children’s charities. Driven by love, it takes action, so vulnerable children and young people living in care and out of care don’t miss out on a safe and happy childhood. 

Carnegie Medal for Writing winner, Margaret McDonald, said: 

“I’m utterly delighted to be the recipient of this year’s Carnegie Medal for Writing. With Glasgow Boys, it was my intention to bring into the light things that are often overlooked as a working class, disabled and first-generation university student, but mainly the difficulties of making your way through a world that is essentially not built for you. We don’t often speak of these invisible barriers but navigate them regardless. It was something that was deeply important for me to showcase the strength, the community, the humour and the love of the people within Glasgow Boys, including but not exclusive to care experienced people, healthcare workers, hospitality staff, queer people, immigrants, and the working class.  My central characters Banjo and Finlay feel as real to me as everyone here right now. They are genuinely standing up here with me to accept this award, and I want to thank the judges for championing them and their story, for giving them this platform and welcoming them into such a legacy as the Carnegies.”  

Olivia Lomenech Gill is a British fine artist and illustrator who was previously shortlisted for the Medal for Illustration for Where My Wellies Take Me, written by Michael and Clare Morpurgo. Lomenech Gill’s interest in birds and the natural world stems from her scientist father and a childhood enjoyment of studying zoological collections at the Natural History Museum in Oxford. 

Clever Crow features “stunning” endpapers depicting nineteen different coloured eggs drawn to scale, and the corresponding adult birds, introduce readers to members of the crow family from around the world, whilst a dark colour palette used throughout creates a “raw, organic and earthy feel” appropriate to the birds and synergistic with the text. The judges praised Lomenech Gill’s “immersive artwork” which gives a sense of movement and “energy” to the playful crows and the “clever” use of “deliberately messy techniques” such as ink splats, torn notebook pages and water staining to give the birds a “playful” and “childlike quality” which “links them to the reader.” Olivia Lomenech Gill plans to use her prize money on a project to support schools, education, and libraries in Palestine. 

Carnegie Medal for Illustration winner, Olivia Lomenech Gill, said:

“I have always had an immense respect for librarians and the vital work they do, so I cannot think of a greater honour than being selected for this award, and I am very grateful to the judges for choosing me as this year’s winner. Working on ‘Clever Crow’ was a great opportunity to learn more about these very clever and sociable birds, and I hope that the book might encourage readers to look at crows from a different viewpoint than the rather negative stereotype as portrayed in fairy tales, horror movies, and Hitchcock!”  

The winners of the Carnegie Medals for Writing and Illustration each receive a specially commissioned golden medal and a £5,000 Colin Mears Award cash prize. 

2025 CLiPPA Winner

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Colette Hiller has been awarded the 2025 CLiPPA (CLPE Children’s Poetry Award) for Colossal Words for Kids – 75 Tremendous Words Neatly Defined to Stick in the Mind

On Friday 20th June 2025, the winner of the UK’s major award for published poetry for children, the CLiPPA (CLPE Children’s Poetry Award) was announced at a ceremony at the National Theatre on London’s Southbank watched live by thousands of primary school children.

In Colossal Words for Kids, Hiller defines in rhyme 75 ‘colossal’ words that children can use in their everyday lives, from capacious to voracious, procrastinate to zest.

A former actor and BBC producer, Hiller believes that children are natural wordsmiths, who love knowing and using big words and of her winning collection says, “My real aim is to spark a lasting joy of language. When we teach young children ambitious words, we show them that they are not intruders and that the English language is theirs for the taking.” 

Poet Roger McGough, chair of this year’s judges, said, “Colossal Words for Kids was a favourite with all the judges. It’s indisputably original and ambitious, with rhymes that demand to be spoken aloud. It’s also proof that learning big words needn’t be even faintly… soporific!”

Also shortlisted were a playful joint collection from John Agard and JonArno Lawson, pet poems by Brian Bilston, rhymes for the very young by previously shortlisted Jane Newberry, and a debut collection by Oliver Sykes describing his own childhood experiences.

Jonathan Douglas, Chief Executive of the National Literacy Trust, CLPE’s parent organisation, opened the event and said, “Children love poetry – reading, writing and performing it, as today’s CLiPPA ceremony demonstrates. We’re delighted to celebrate another outstanding shortlist and winner and to do so at the National Theatre and in the company of so many excited, enthusiastic young poetry fans. There’s no award quite like the CLiPPA!”

As well as spotlighting the best new poetry for children, the CLiPPA encourages schools to explore the shortlist with their pupils through its Shadowing Scheme and over 400 schools took part this year. Primary school children from Birmingham, Bradford, Croydon, Woodford Green and Bishop’s Stortford, winners in the CLiPPA Shadowing Scheme, also performed live at the ceremony on the Lyttleton Theatre stage alongside the poets. On the day of the ceremony, the performing schools enjoyed performance skills workshops delivered by the National Theatre to support them in their preparations to perform on the Lyttelton stage.

An audience of 800 watched the event live in the Lyttelton Theatre, while hundreds of schools across the country joined in watching the CLiPPA Award Ceremony via Livestream.

Colette Hiller receives a trophy and a cheque for £1000.

The CLiPPA is delivered in partnership with the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS) and supported by Arts Council England. The Week Junior are media partner.

Klaus Flugge Prize 2025 Shortlist

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The shortlist for the Klaus Flugge Prize has just been announced  (Thursday 15 May). This is the tenth year of the award which was established in 2016 to honour Klaus Flugge, founder of Andersen Press and a leading light in the world of children’s publishing and illustration. The £5,000 prize is awarded to the most promising and exciting newcomer to children’s picture book illustration. It is the only prize specifically to recognise a published picture book by a debut illustrator.

From a longlist of 15 picture books by debut illustrators, this year’s panel of judges have chosen three to shortlist.

The shortlisted books are:

My Hair is as Long as a River illustrated by Emma Farrarons, written by Charlie Castle (Macmillan)
Some people don’t understand why the boy in this story has long hair, but through a series of wonderful metaphors, gloriously illustrated by Emma Farrarons, he shows us why it’s so important, how it is part of him, even his ‘happy ever after’. The judges highlight the sense of playfulness and imagination captured in the illustrations and admire the loose artwork style and gorgeous colour palette.

The Café at the Edge of the Woods by Mikey Please (HarperCollins Children’s Books)
Rene’s dream of serving haute cuisine in her café at the edge of the woods seems doomed to failure when it fails to attract any customers. But then her resourceful waiter Glumfoot takes matters into his own hands and finds a new and enthusiastic clientele. Mikey Please won the Waterstones Children’s Book Award with this book. The judges admire the tempo very much and the story structure. It’s a book to appeal to a wide range of readers and will inspire future picture book makers.

Grandad’s Star illustrated by Rhian Stone, written by Frances Tosdevin (Rocket Bird Books)
When Grandad was younger, he was an astronomer, and he’s full of stories about the stars. But now he’s getting older, he’s starting to forget things including the stories that he has always known so well, and even his granddaughter’s name. But the love between them doesn’t dim. The judges admire the sense of feeling created in this story and strong sense of narrative. They also highlight the loose and light artistic approach and the expressive body language.

Chair of the judges Julia Eccleshare says, “Once again, the longlist reflected the creative ambitions of new illustrators and their publishers, but these three books stand out. Emma Farrarons, Mikey Please and Rhian Stone are exceptionally talented illustrators, and their books demonstrate powerfully all that picture books can do, taking young children into new and different worlds, explaining emotions through the medium of illustration, and creating a sense of self and identity. We are delighted to spotlight them and their artform as the Klaus Flugge Prize celebrates its tenth anniversary.”

The 2025 judging panel is headed by award-winning author illustrators Yasmeen Ismail and Bruce Ingman. Ingmanalso leads the MA Children’s Literature: Children’s Book Illustration course at Goldsmiths, University of London. They are joined as judges by teacher and educational consultant Rachna Joshi; and 2024 Klaus Flugge Prize winner Kate Winter. Julia Eccleshare is chair of the judging panel.

The winner will be announced at a ceremony at the Art Workers’ Guild, Queen Square, London on Thursday 11 September 2025 and will receive a cheque for £5,000.

 

2025 CLiPPA Shortlist

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Earlier today at a live online event watched by thousands of school children across the UK, the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE) announced the shortlist for the 2025 CLiPPA (CLPE Poetry Award).

Now in its third decade, the CLiPPA is the UK’s leading award for published poetry for children and highlights the year’s best new poetry for children. Past winners include Carol Ann Duffy, Jackie Kay, Michael Rosen and Valerie Bloom as well as current Waterstone’s Children’s Laureate, Joseph Coelho. Matt Goodfellow won the 2024 CLiPPA with the highly regarded verse novel, The Final Year, and is on this year’s judging panel.

Chair of the judges, poet Roger McGough says, “I and my fellow judges had so many wonderful books to choose from and this year’s shortlist features beautifully illustrated books to fascinate and inspire young readers and listeners; an important new voice; as well as old friends with new books. These five collections each have their own magic. We are delighted now to hand these vibrant verses over to children and watch them make them their own through the CLiPPA Shadowing scheme.”

Roger McGough is joined on the panel by Lucy Bannerman, children’s books editor The Times; teacher Saira Bano; playwright and Marketing Manager at writing and educational charity First Story, Annette Brook; and fellow poet Matt Goodfellow.

The CLiPPA shortlist 2025:

Wise Up! Wise Down by John Agard and JonArno Lawson, illustrated by Satoshi Kitamura, Walker Books (9+)
Two extremely accomplished poets have a conversation in poems, riffing off on one another’s thoughts, going off at tangents and throwing their own new shapes. A boundary pushing collection that feels really different say the judges.

Let Sleeping Cats Lie, Brian Bilston, Macmillan (9+)
From a haiku composed by the poet’s dog to an experimental poem written by his cat, and an ode to scamster ‘Arry the ‘Amster, Brian Bilston’s collection will amuse (and sometimes move) all readers. This collection made the judges laugh out loud and they know it will have the same effect on children.

Colossal Words for Kids by Colette Hiller, illustrated by Tor Freeman, Frances Lincoln (7+)
Indisputably original and ambitious, say the judges, this riveting collection introduces 75 tremendous words in clever rhymes that shout out to be read aloud.

Big Red Dragon by Jane Newberry, illustrated by Carolina Rabei, Otter-Barry Books (3+)
There are poems for every season of the year in this liveliest of collections for youngsters, and lots of encouragement to join in. Bring your hands, your feet and your faces, say the judges and get ready to roar these poems off the page.

We Are Family by Oliver Skyes, illustrated by Ian Morris, Otter-Barry Books (9+)
In a first and deeply personal collection, Oliver Sykes presents poems about growing up poor in a busy, loving single parent family, delivered with sustained energy and insight, and clear joy in rhyme. Authentic and convincing, this gives voice to children not heard enough, say the judges.

The CLiPPA encourages schools to explore the shortlist with their pupils through its unique Shadowing Scheme, which each year prompts poetry performances in hundreds of classrooms. In keeping with its aim of fully involving children in the CLiPPA, the shortlist was announced at an online event beamed live into schools at 2.15pm today, 23 April. Shortlisted poets gave readings at the event, including John Agard, Brian Bilston, Colette Hiller, JonArno Lawson, Jane Newberry and Oliver Sykes. Children will now choose their favourite poems from the collections and create their own poetry performances, either solo or in groups. The best of these will be celebrated at the award ceremony to be held at the National Theatre on Friday, 20 June.

The Shadowing Scheme is free for schools and launches on 23 April 2025. Schools can register their interest to take part now.

 

Live Online CLiPPA Shortlisting Event

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CLPE, the National Poetry Centre for Primary Schools, has just announced that chair of this year’s CLiPPA judges, Roger McGough, will be hosting a live online event to announce the shortlist for this year’s CLiPPA Award. All schools in the UK are invited to attend the event which will take place at 2.15pm on Wednesday 23 April.

The CLiPPA is the UK’s leading award for published poetry for children and past winners include Carol Ann Duffy, John Agard, Jackie Kay, Joseph Coelho and recently Michael Rosen and Valerie Bloom. Matt Goodfellow, also a judge this year, was awarded the 2024 CLiPPA for his verse novel, The Final Year.

Guests at the special virtual event will include shortlisted poets who will perform poems from their collections.

To receive their invitation, all schools need to do is to register for this year’s CLiPPA Shadowing Scheme.

As the National Poetry Centre for Primary Schools, CLPE works to embed poetry fully both in classrooms and in children’s reading for pleasure choices. The unique CLiPPA Shadowing Scheme enables schools to explore the shortlist with their pupils, looking at the poems in depth and creating live performances of individual favourites. CLPE provide specially created support materials for teachers, including videos of the shortlisted poets. The resources are supplied free to schools when they register to take part. Each year the Shadowing Scheme prompts poetry performances in hundreds of classrooms.

The winner of the 2025 CLiPPA will be announced live onstage at the National Theatre, Friday 20 June. Shadowing schools will be invited to attend this special in-person event, with the Shadowing Scheme winners performing live onstage alongside the shortlisted poets.

Schools can sign up to register their interest in the CLiPPA Shadowing Scheme here.

Alex Wheatle, ‘Bard of Brixton’ 1963-2025

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OBITUARIES (this list will be added to as they appear)
Telegraph
Guardian

[21 Mar 2025] The children’s books world in the UK was shattered yesterday by news of the untimely death of Alex Wheatle. The online reaction was immediate and fulsome:

 

 
 
 
 
 
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2025 Carnegie Shortlists

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The 2025 Carnegie Medal for Illustration shortlist is (alphabetical by illustrator surname):

  • The Invisible Story by Wen Hsu Chen, written by Jaime Gamboa, translated by Daniel
    Hahn (Lantana)
  • Grey by Lauren Child, written by Laura Dockrill (Walker Books)
  • I Love Books by Mariajo Ilustrajo (Quarto)
  • Clever Crow by Olivia Lomenech Gill, written by Chris Butterworth (Walker Books)
  • Letters in Charcoal by Juan Palomino, written by Irene Vasco, translated by Lawrence
    Schimel (Lantana)
  • Homebody by Theo Parish (Macmillan Children’s Books)
  • Wolf and Bear by Kate Rolfe (Macmillan Children’s Books)
  • Flying High by Yu Rong, written by Cao Wenxuan, translated by Simone-Davina Monnelly and Jake Hope (CLan Publishing)

carnegies25fic

 

The 2025 Carnegie Medal for Writing shortlist is (alphabetical by author surname):

  • Treacle Town by Brian Conaghan (Andersen Press)
  • The Things We Leave Behind by Clare Furniss (Simon & Schuster UK)
  • The Final Year by Matt Goodfellow, illustrated by Joe Todd-Stanton (Otter-Barry Books)
  • King of Nothing by Nathanael Lessore (Bonnier Books UK)
  • Little Bang by Kelly McCaughrain (Walker Books)
  • Glasgow Boys by Margaret McDonald (Faber & Faber)
  • All That It Ever Meant by Blessing Musariri (Zephyr, Head of Zeus)
  • Play by Luke Palmer (Firefly Press)

IBC Awards 2025

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The Inclusive Books for Children Awards were announced last night:

Highly Illustrated Children’s Fiction WINNER
Destiny Ink: Sleepover Surprise written and illustrated by Adeola Sokunbi | Published by Nosy Crow.

Picture Book WINNER
Two People Can  written by Blessing Musariri & illustrated by Maisie Paradise Shearring | Published by Kumusha Books

Baby and Toddler WINNER
Democratic Republic of the Congo  Written by Mel Nyoko illustrated by Joelle Avelino | Published by Barefoot Books

MEGA: The Most Enormous Animals Ever by Jules Howard ill. Gavin Scott

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ACHUKA Book of the Day 27 Feb 2025

Waterstones
Bookshop

  • Why did some of the largest creatures on Earth go extinct?
  • What do we know about their lives from the clues they left behind?
  • How can we protect the megafauna that roam our planet today?

Unearth these secrets and many more in this bumper-sized information book written by zoology correspondent, science-writer and broadcaster Jules Howard. The jacket cover unfolds to become a poster.

This well-designed luxury publication will be a much-desired title for home shelves and school libraries.

Gavin Scott, the illustrator, studied Natural History Illustration at university and later went on to enter the world of character design and children’s illustration. You can follow him on

 

 
 
 
 
 
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Judges for the 2025 CLiPPA Award Announced

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image provided by CLPE

Yesterday, CLPE (the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education) announced that ‘patron saint of poetry’, Roger McGough CBE, will chair the 2025 judging panel for the CLiPPA, the UK’s foremost award for published poetry for children.
Roger McGough, who first chaired the award in 2015, says, “I have been close to the CLiPPA for many years, and for good reason: the energy, commitment and passion that goes into all that it does, i.e. literacy in schools and spreading the good word about the value of good words. I am delighted to be part of a judging panel that will choose the annual award from a shortlist representing poetry aimed at children of all ages. I have put on my wig and gown, read a few books, and already I am hooked, enthralled and impatient to meet up with my fellow judges. Poetry for kids, bring it on!”
Roger McGough is joined on the panel by

  • Lucy Bannerman, children’s books editor The Times
  • playwright and Marketing Manager at First Story, Annette Brook
  • teacher Saira Bano
  • poet Matt Goodfellow, who won the CLiPPA in 2024 with his acclaimed verse novel, The Final Year

CLPE’s unique and much-praised CLiPPA Shadowing Scheme brings the poets and poetry on each year’s shortlist into classrooms across the UK. It invites teachers to choose one of the collections shortlisted for the CLiPPA and share it with their pupils, using dedicated teaching sequences produced by CLPE including videos of the poets performing their work. Children choose a favourite poem from a shortlisted collection to work up into a performance, which is recorded and sent to a CLPE judging panel. Winning schools are then invited to perform live at the award ceremony at the National Theatre. CLPE estimate that over 40,000 children were involved in the CLiPPA in 2024 and that even more will participate in 2025.

The 2025 CLiPPA Shadowing is open for registration now and schools are invited to join CLPE online on 23 April to watch the live announcement of the shortlist, with poetry performances by shortlisted poets.

The 2025 award ceremony will be held at the National Theatre on Friday 20 June.

Rebecca Eaves, CLPE’s Chief Executive, says, “We are delighted that Roger is returning as a judge in 2025 and proud there is such an abundance of new poetry to read. Our work with primary schools and research with teachers shows that when taught with confidence and enjoyment, poetry reaches children in ways other literary forms do not (Poetry In Primary Schools 2023). We can’t wait to share the judge’s shortlist with teachers and children across the country.”

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