Children’s Laureate Wales & Bardd Plant Cymru
Children’s Laureate Wales
Founded in 2019, the role of Children’s Laureate Wales 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.
Alex Wharton is an award-winning writer and performer of poetry for adults and children. His First Book of poetry for children, Daydreams and Jellybeans, was shortlisted for the Wales Book of The Year Award 2022, The North Somerset Teacher’s Book Awards, The Laugh Out Loud Book Awards and was named as a National Poetry Day Recommended Read. Alex won the Rising Stars Wales Award in 2020, held by Literature Wales and Firefly Press. He has collaborated with key national organisations such as Cadw, National Dance Company Wales, Welsh Government, British Council of Literature and Welsh Libraries, and has also appeared in festivals such as Hay Festival and Edinburgh International Book Festival. Alex’s second and third collections of poetry Poems for Brilliant Brains and Red Sky at Night: A Poet’s Delight will be published with Firefly Press in 2023 and 2024.
As Children’s Laureate Wales, Alex will invite children and young people to explore the magic and playfulness of language, learning how this artistic and creative expression can enhance how we live, feel, imagine, create, and communicate; making them feel understood and inspired by the joy and freedom of writing. He is also interested in combining poetry with other artistic disciplines; collaborate with and share the work of other Welsh writers; and illuminate the wonders of our natural world.
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
For further information, visit the Literature Wales website, or get in touch on childrenslaureate@literaturewales.org
Follow Children’s Laureate Wales on Twitter. Photography c. Literature Wales.
Bardd Plant Cymru
Founded in 2000, the role of Bardd Plant Cymru is awarded every two years to a Welsh-language poet who is passionate about ensuring more children and young people discover the joy and well-being benefits of engaging with literature. The project introduces Welsh-language poetry to children in an energetic, dynamic and fun way through workshops, performances and various activities. The project promotes creativity, communication skills and self-expression through the love of literature.
Bardd Plant Cymru is committed to:
- Expanding children and young people’s access to Welsh-language 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 current Bardd Plant Cymru is writer and playwright from Cardiff, Nia Morais. It was announced on Thursday 1 June 2023, at Eisteddfod yr Urdd in Llanymddyfri that Nia would be the 18th Bardd Plant Cymru stepping into the role. Nia started in the role in September 2023, and will be in the post until August 2025.
Nia Morais is a writer and playwright from Cardiff. Her work often focuses on self-image, mental health and magic. She graduated from Cardiff University with a master’s degree in creative writing. In 2020, she released her first audio play, Crafangau, as part of Sherman Theatre’s Heart of Cardiff project. Nia is currently Writer in Residence at Sherman Theatre and her first full play Imrie, co-produced by Frân Wen and Sherman Theatre, toured Wales over the summer of 2023. Nia was a member of the Tir na n-Og Awards judging panel in 2021, and also part of the Literature Wales’ Representing Wales writers development programme the same year. Nia writes for children and adults.
As Bardd Plant Cymru, Nia’s main objective is to ensure that there are more opportunities for children and young people to discuss and write about topics that are crucial to them, and rare in Welsh literature. She is passionate about proving that the Welsh language belongs to everyone, championing individuality and encouraging positivity and respect towards our self-image.
The Bardd Plant Cymru role complements its English-language sister project, Children’s Laureate Wales and the two roles contribute towards nurturing a healthier, more creative, and more diverse generation of readers and writers across Wales. All activities are conducted through the medium of Welsh, but the scheme provides for and engages with children whose first language is not Welsh. The scheme is run by Literature Wales with the support of Welsh Government, S4C, Books Council of Wales and Urdd Gobaith Cymru.
For further information, visit the Literature Wales website, or get in touch on mailto:barddplant@llenyddiaethcymru.org
Follow Bardd Plant Cymru on Twitter