COMPETITION

Exploring, celebrating, developing the written and spoken word.

South Downs Poetry Festival
2026 Poetry Competition

The trumpet of a prophecy! O Wind, if Winter comes can Spring be far behind?

The Binsted Prize

PRIZES:

Overall winner:

£250 + Binsted Prize + publication in the Binsted Prize Anthology

Runner-up:

£150 + publication in the Binsted Prize Anthology

Third place: £50 + publication in the Binsted Prize Anthology

Highly Commended and Commended poems will be published in the Binsted Prize Anthology

On Sat 23 May 2026 at 7pm prize winners will be invited to read their poems, and the judge will give a reading at St John's Chapel, Chichester, PO19 1UR.

The winning poem will also be considered for publication in the respected Poetry & All That Jazz magazine.

ENTER VIA https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/southdownspoetryfestival

PAY HERE

PRIZES
1st place - £250
2nd place - £150
3rd place - £50

PRIZEWINNERS WILL BE INVITED TO A PUBLIC READING OF THE PRIZEWINNING POEMS AT St JOHN'S CHAPEL, CHICHESTER, ON SAT 23 MAY. 7pm start.

Submission Guidelines and Award Rules

POEMS

Poems must be the original work of the named author and must not have been previously published or won a prize in any competition. Entries from any country are welcome.

Poems must not exceed 40 lines. No author names on poems - personal details to go on email only

Poems being submitted to other competitions can be accepted subject to withdrawal if another prize is awarded before winners in this competition are notified.

The judge will read all entries and their decision is final. No discussion or amendments. Copyright remains with the author.

SUBMISSION

Email only, no postal entries.

After making your payment, email your poems as an attachment (word.doc, .docx, only) to sdpfcomp@gmail.com

Include in the body of the email:

Poet’s Name, Address and Phone Number, List of Titles, Number of Poems, Total Fees, & Payment Receipt Number.

NO ENTRY CAN BE ACCEPTED WITHOUT A PAYMENT RECEIPT NUMBER.

FEES

£5 for first poem and £4 thereafter. No limit on entries.

Please note:

The organisers accept no responsibility for entries that are incorrectly submitted or not delivered due to technical faults.

By entering the competition, entrants agree to accept and be bound by the rules of the competition and the decision of the judge.

Competition Judge: Joanna Lilley

Joanna Lilley’s third poetry collection, Endlings, was published by Turnstone Press and won the Fred Kerner Book Award. She's also the author of a novel and a short story collection, and her fourth poetry book, Three Pieces of Sea, is out in spring 2026 with Turnstone Press. From the south of England, Joanna lived in Wales and Scotland before moving to Yukon, Canada, where she resides with gratitude on the Traditional Territories of the Kwanlin Dün First Nation and the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council. She’s given readings and workshops as far afield as Alaska and Iceland and in 2021 was awarded Commissioner of Yukon’s Borealis Prize for literary contribution.
Joanna is online at www.joannalilley.blogspot.