Isobel Horsley

A Lichfield teenager has been named as Staffordshire’s new young poet laureate.

Isobel Horsley won the role after performed her poems at the Shire Hall Gallery earlier this month.

Isobel Horsley
Isobel Horsley
The King Edward VI School student saw off other hopefuls aged 14 to 18.

“I’m thrilled to be chosen because I can share my other poetry with my age group and perhaps convince them it’s not as boring as they think it might be,” she said. “I like writing about things I see or I think are interesting.

“In my year as poet laureate I want to try and organise some mixed media competitions and see if we can get more people enthused about poetry, or maybe start a club in my local library about performing and reading poetry. I’m really excited”

Isobel becomes Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent’s fourth young poet laureate.

Cllr Gill Heath, Cabinet member responsible for libraries at Staffordshire County Council, said: “I’m delighted to welcome Isobel to her new role. I know the judges were very impressed with her poetry and performance skills.

“I wish her every success in her forthcoming role, she’s in for a busy year writing and performing poems for special events, and helping us to boost appreciation of poetry in younger people across the county.”

The judges included Staffordshire poet laureate Bert Flitcroft and outgoing young poet laureate Mathilda Houston-Brown, who said: “I was struck by Isobel’s passion for poetry, she had an interesting way of using different voices that made her poetry unique.

“Being young poet laureate is a task with a lot of responsibility, and we felt that Isobel would really throw herself into the role and take as much out of it as she could.

“I certainly know that it has brought me a lot of joy, and encouraged my confidence, and I hope it will be as beneficial to Isobel as it was to me.”

Isobel will take up the role at a special celebration event on National Poetry Day on 6 October.

Founder of Lichfield Live and editor of the site.