Chichester Cathedral celebrates young storytellers

Published 12:33 on 18 Sep 2025

Chichester Cathedral has announced the winners of its Write950 Creative Writing Competition, launched earlier this year as part of its 950th anniversary celebrations.

Young people from across Sussex were invited to submit their own short stories, inspired by the Cathedrals rich history and spirituality. The competition, which was delivered in partnership with local charity Childrens BookFest and Waterstones Chichester, attracted entries from children aged 4 to 15 years old, with tales ranging from mischievous gargoyles and magical chalices to surprising wedding day adventures.

Over 140 children entered the competition with one winner from each of the three age groups chosen. Winners were: 

• Amazing Authors (Ages 47): Seren with Bertie Portfield Primary School
• Adventurous Authors (Ages 811): Fintan with Cathedral Commotion Windlesham House School
• Aspiring Authors (Ages 1215): Krystelle with Maxies Chalice Miracle Bishop Luffa School

Special Commendations were also awarded to:

• Amazing Authors (47): 
  • Tombo with Cat Dragon - Portfield Primary School
  • Delilah with Chagalls Window - Portfield Primary School
• Adventurous Authors (811): 
  • Ruby-May with Gargoyle - Portfield Primary School
  • Samuel with The Accident of 1861 - Lavant Primary School
  • Phoebe with A Wedding Day Surprise - Windlesham House School

The judging panel included award-winning childrens authors Simon Philip and Ali Sparkes, Katy Roberts, Manager of Waterstones Chichester and Rosie Bradberry, Creative Learning Manager at Chichester Cathedral.

Rosie said: Weve been amazed by the imagination and creativity shown by every young writer who entered. The Cathedral has been a place of storytelling for centuries and its been inspiring to see children creating such original and magical tales. Huge congratulations to our winners and commendations. Their stories capture the spirit of Write950 perfectly.

Ali Sparkes, author of the Shapeshifter series and Frozen in Time, said: The range of ideas was fantastic - from cheeky dragons to mysterious Cathedral happenings. Each story showed great imagination and voice and it was a joy to help celebrate these budding authors.

Simon Philip, author of popular childrens books including You Must Bring a Hat, said: I was really impressed with the quality of the writing. Choosing winners was no easy task! Its wonderful to see so much talent and enthusiasm for storytelling at such a young age.

Each winner received a special goody bag and the opportunity to choose a new book each month from Waterstones in Chichester for a whole year. Winners were presented with their prizes at a celebratory ceremony in the Cathedral on Saturday 13 September.

In addition, the winning stories will be brought to life for listeners across the region. Authors Ali and Simon have recorded each of the winning stories, which will be shared by V2 Radio, ensuring the young writers words reach an even wider audience.

Katy Roberts, Bookshop Manager of Waterstones Chichester, said: Every single entry showed creativity and we loved seeing how the Cathedral sparked such brilliant ideas. We cant wait to welcome the winners into our Chichester store each month over the next year to choose a book and discover new authors and adventures that will help inspire their writing journey.

To see the winning stories, visit  https://www.chichestercathedral.org.uk/news/write950-winners-announced-chichester-cathedrals-950th-anniversary-creative-writing