Enter the Happiful Poetry Prize 2027

Our poetry competition is back! With acclaimed guest judges, exciting new prizes, and a free poetry webinar for every entrant…

Launched in autumn 2023, the Happiful Poetry Prize celebrates exceptional writing about mental health and wellbeing. Last year, we received hundreds of outstanding entries, including many from people completely new to poetry.

Now, the prize is back. This year, we’ve introduced exciting new prizes, and every entrant will get a free ticket to an exclusive poetry webinar. We’ve also welcomed two guest judges to help us choose our winner.

We’re looking for original poems that explore mental health and wellbeing in unique, engaging, and empowering ways. Our UK poetry competition is completely free to enter, and you don’t need any previous publishing or poetry experience. All you need is a passion for writing.

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Submitting your poem

To enter, you’ll need to submit:

• One original, previously unpublished poem about mental health or wellbeing, written in English and no more than 25 lines long (excluding the title).
• Your poem’s title.
• Your full name, email address, and postcode.
• A short biography.
• Your poem saved as a Word document (.doc or .docx) or PDF (.pdf).

You must be aged 18 or over and resident in the UK to enter. Only one entry per person is permitted. Generative AI must not be used to write, rewrite, or generate any part of your poem.

Read the full T&Cs before entering. Good luck!

NOTE: The Happiful Poetry Prize opens on 1 September. Sign up to our newsletter for updates.

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We have new prizes...

The winner will receive £100, and four shortlisted poets will each receive a £25 National Book Token. The winning and shortlisted poems will be published in issue 120 of Happiful.

🎉And there’s something for every entrant… 🎉

Every entrant will be invited to an exclusive free online poetry webinar led by poet Sophie Dumont, delivered in partnership with the Rebecca Swift Foundation. Join this exclusive event, offering inspiration, guidance, and practical writing advice from a professional poet.

And guest judges...

We're delighted to welcome two special guest judges, Deborah Alma and Richard Tyler, who will join the Happiful editorial team in selecting the winning and shortlisted poems.

Find out more about our judges.

Dates for your diary

The Happiful Poetry Prize opens on 1 September 2026 and closes at 11.59pm on 30 October 2026.

The winner and shortlisted poets will be contacted with the results by 28 February 2027.

Looking for inspiration?

The best writers are great readers. Head to happiful.com/poetry-prize to read Happiful’s 2026 winning and shortlisted poems, as well as exclusive Q&As with the poets behind them, and practical tips and prompts to get started on your own poem.