Competitions
Discover a wide range of poetry competitions where you can showcase your talent and gain recognition.
And before you check out this list below, take a look at our own Word Exchange poetry competition, part of our A Poet in Every Port tour, through which you could win the chance to perform your poetry at the 2027 London Literature Festival.
Have a poetry competition to share? Submit the details and help others find new opportunities to participate.
Please note that the competitions listed below are not organised by the National Poetry Library.
Please check the terms and conditions of each prize before submitting.
The Moth Nature Writing Prize
The Big Dithering Chaps September Cut-off
Gloucestershire Poetry Society 2026 Open Poetry Competition
The New Cockney Poets & Together on Cable Street
Worlds into Words: Freedom from Torture Poetry Competition 2026
Waltham Forest Poetry Competition
National Poetry Competition 2026
Anthology Poetry Competition 2026
Add your competition
Complete our online form to submit a competition.
Please note that the library does its best to ensure it lists poetry competitions that support the writing community.
All competitions should clearly state the prizes for winning poets and competitions without an external judge may be subject to additional review. All competitions entered through this webform are subject to approval before being posted to the website.
For your visit
National Poetry Library Southbank Centre
The National Poetry Library is open six days a week.
Tuesday, 12 noon – 6pm
Wednesday – Sunday, 12 noon – 8pm
Monday, closed.
Getting here
The National Poetry Library is on Level 5 of our Royal Festival Hall.
Our address is Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX.
The nearest tube stations to us are Waterloo and Embankment; Waterloo is also the nearest train station. And more than 20 different London bus routes pass within 500 metres of our venues. More information on getting here by rail, road or river is available on our Getting here page.
We’re cash-free
Please note that we’re unable to accept cash payments across our venues.
Access
We’re working hard to remove barriers, so that our facilities and events can be accessible to as many people as possible.
All help points, toilets, performance and exhibition spaces at the Southbank Centre are accessible to all, as are the cafes, bars and restaurants. We also have excellent public transport links with step-free access.
All information about booking wheelchair spaces, step-free access, blue badge parking, access maps and guides and other help available whilst you’re here, including details about our Access Scheme, can be found on our Access page.
Study & library use
The library is London’s only space dedicated to poetry study. Visitors studying another subject or looking for a place to work are kindly asked to find an alternative space in the Royal Festival Hall.
