SPS has held the annual Crabbe poetry competition since 1954, which is now open to all who were born, educated or live in Suffolk, Norfolk or Essex, or are SPS members.

The competition is now closed.

We are delighted to welcome Elizabeth Cook as our adjudicator for the 2025 George Crabbe Poetry Competition.

Elizabeth Cook has written poetry, fiction, and libretti and was the editor of the Oxford Authors John Keats. Her fiction includes Achilles, which won a Fringe First when performed in Edinburgh, and Lux. She was librettist for Francis Grier’s The Passion of Jesus of Nazareth, commissioned by BBC Radio 3, and has published two full collections of poetry, Bowl, and When I Kiss the Sky as well as a pamphlet, The Sound of the Rain. She has written critical essays and reviews and has taught in universities, prisons, and a Franciscan friary. She was St Edmundsbury Cathedral’s first Writer in Residence, has been a Hawthornden Fellow and a Royal Literary Fund Fellow at Queen Mary University. Poetry is at the heart of her work, and she recommends reading aloud and learning poems by heart to create an inner store for rainy days.

First Prize: £500
Second Prize: £250
Third Prize: £100
plus
Two Highly Commended Prizes of £50

All winning poems (including commended poems not attracting a monetary prize) will be read, preferably by their authors, at a celebratory Awards Event on Saturday, 18 October 2025.

Competition Rules

Entrants should either have been born, or educated, currently work or be resident in Suffolk, Norfolk or Essex or be a current member of Suffolk Poetry Society.
Poems should be in English and a maximum of 50 lines.
Poems must be the writer’s own work, not AI-generated, not published, broadcast, on a website, or currently entered in any other competition.
Postal submission: Each poem must be typed twice on separate pages and submitted with the fee. The poet’s name must appear on only one copy of each poem.
Online submission: Each poem must be uploaded twice, on two pages of a single file and submitted with the fee. If entering more than one poem, put them all in the same document.
The poet’s name must appear on one copy only of each poem.
The adjudicator’s decision is final.
No entrant can win more than one monetary prize.
Only winners will be notified. Winners will be listed on the website in September 2025.
The Press may also be notified of the winning poets and poems.
Copyright of the poem remains with the poet, with permission to Suffolk Poetry Society to publish any winning poem free of charge.

Entry fees: £4 for each poem.

Closing date: Midnight Friday 13 June 2025.

To enter, please complete the following items and change the ‘Add to Basket’ quantity to the number of poems you are entering.

Whether you are entering one or several poems, please read this carefully and prepare your poem(s) as described before starting to enter.

Put two copies of each of your poems into one document. Trying to upload each copy in separate documents will not work.
Put each poem on a separate page (Hint: In Word use Insert->Pages->Page Break to separate them).
Ensure that your name appears against only one copy of each poem. I.e. One copy of each poem must be anonymous.
(Optional step) If you wish, save it as a PDF to preserve any complex formatting.
Use the Browse… button below to find and upload your document.
Set the basket quantity to the number of poems. E.g. if you are entering two poems, your basket will show 2.
Select your qualification to enter the competition.
Show your agreement with the competition rules.
If ‘Pay with link’ appears, this is because you have previously saved your details with Stripe, or you will be able to do so. You may pay using that, or select ‘Add to Basket’ and you will be taken to the checkout where you can pay with Stripe, PayPal, cheque or BACS.

Crabbe

Event Tickets

Twelfth Festival of Suffolk Poetry 2026

Competition/Books

George Crabbe Poetry Competition Entry 2025