Children’s Laureate Wales
The Children’s Laureate Wales is a national ambassadorial role which aims to inspire and empower children and young people across Wales through literature.
Founded in 2019, the role is awarded every two years to a talented and visionary Wales-based writer who is passionate about ensuring more children and young people discover the joy and well-being benefits of engaging with literature.
The current Children’s Laureate Wales is poet Alex Wharton, the third to be appointed to the role.
Alex appointment was announced on 2 June, 2023, during an event at Hay Festival alongside his predecessor, Children’s Laureate Wales 2021- 2023, Connor Allen. Alex will be in the role until August 2025, working hard to share the power of poetry: making it accessible, fun, and relevant to children and young people across Wales.
The Children’s Laureate Wales is committed to:
- Expanding children and young people’s access to literature, in particular children and young people from marginalised and under-represented backgrounds
- Improving children and young people’s physical and mental health and well-being through literature
- Increasing children and young people’s enjoyment of literature
- Empowering children and young people through creativity
The Children’s Laureate Wales keeps busy by:
- Running poetry workshops inside and outside of the classroom
- Penning official poems to mark special occasions and campaigns which are of interest to children and young people
- Creating online creative resources for children and young people to enjoy
- Championing the voices of Wales’ children and young people nationally and internationally
To keep on top of all of our Children’s Laureate Wales news, head over to Twitter and follow us at @Laureate_Wales. For enquiries, including project or collaboration proposals, please email childrenslaureate@literaturewales.org or phone 029 2047 2266.
To request a freelance school visit, please head to the Author’s Aloud website. Find out more on the FAQ’s page below.