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You Can't Jail Minds

Poetry Competition imageYou Can't Jail Minds is our poetry competition that celebrates freedom of expression, inspired by prisoners who, inspite of everything, have still found a way to express themselves through poetry.

Young people in schools across the UK have been imagining they are in prison and have to write a poem without pen and paper. The power and creativity of the poems we received was overwhelming, and made judging a tough job, but here they are - congratulations to our regional winners!

Coming soon: See the winning poems in the You Can't Jail Minds gallery...

East:
Rosie Thurlow, Aylesham High (KS3)
Hannah Ehrlich, Parkside Community College (KS4)

North + Midlands:
Josh Lewis, Friary School (KS3)
Aditi Gaddam, St.Clare's, Oxford (KS4)

South West:
Jack Brownbridge-Kelly, Humphrey-Davy School (KS3)

South East:
Eleanor Reeve, Abbey School, Reading (KS3)
Rachel Rowan-Olive, St. Albans School for Girls (KS4)

Nations + Regions:
Amanda Evans, Bishop of Llandaff School (KS3)

Inspiration

I will live and survive and be asked:
How they slammed my head against a trestle
From I Will Live And Survive, Irina Ratushinskaya |
Read poem | About Irina

I don't want fists and paws
I want
to want to be touched
again 
From Touch, Hugh Lewin |
Read poem | About Hugh

From the window of my small cell
I can see your large cell.
From End of A Discussion with a Jailer, Samih Al-Qasim |
Read poem | About Samih

the night is like a day on the other side of the bars
on this side the day is like the night.
From The Doves, Reza Baraheni | Read poem | About Reza