Key announcements

Due to maintenance, some of our online forms and systems will be unavailable from 6:00am on Saturday 30 March to 7:00am on Monday 1 April. We are sorry for any inconvenience. To find out more about the section 114 notice, visit our section 114 page

Lauren Williams - young poet laureate 2013 to 2014

Lauren was 15 years old when she became Young Poet Laureate and was attending Ormiston Academy. Lauren spoke about her views on poetry:

"I currently attend Year 11 at the Birmingham Ormiston Academy on the Acting pathway. This has really helped my confidence and allowed me to add more performance to my poetry. My poetry is an outlet for me to express my views. I write about various themes that I have an opinion about and my inspiration comes from my community, media and personal experiences.

I was very fortunate and blessed to make the shortlist and win the young poet laureate on my first try. I have been writing since primary school but have only recently had the opportunity to share my work with others giving me the opportunity to be heard and inspire others to have the confidence to express themselves openly.

I am passionate about poetry and feel that communicating through spoken word is a powerful tool that can reach individuals on every level, being more accessible, enabling people to connect and interpret what is being said more effectively than through a conversation or speech. I see poetry as a medium for personal opinions and a mode of communication.

When I write, I speak out louder than when I speak with muted lips".

Download Lauren Williams' poems

rating button