OUR WINNERS:
POETRY COMPETITION
After a competitive competition, with over 80 submissions, our judging panel are pleased to announce the winners of our 2025 poetry competition...
A note from the Competition organisers:
We are delighted to celebrate the winners of our very first Interfaith Week Poetry Competition. In 2025, we received over 80 inspiring entries across all four key stages, with submissions coming from across the country, from London to Leicester, Kent to Kirklees, Darlington to Derbyshire, and many places in between.
We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to all the students who took part. The creativity, thoughtfulness and depth shown in your poetry made the judging process both rewarding and incredibly challenging. We are also deeply grateful to the teachers who supported and encouraged their students to participate, this competition would not have been possible without you.
A special thank you goes to our judges, Carrie and Amy from the Faith & Belief Forum, Denise Chaplin (NASACRE), Stacey Burman (AREIAC), Claire Clinton (RE Hubs) and Julia Diamond Conway (RE Today), who had the difficult task of selecting the winners from such a strong field of entries. All winners have now received their prizes, and we are pleased to share that we will be returning for Interfaith Week again this year with our second competition.
We are also in the final stages of producing a downloadable anthology, which will feature the winning poems alongside many other outstanding submissions. This resource will include activities and discussion prompts designed for use across all key stages.
Thank you once again,
Sarah March, Faith & Belief Forum
KEY STAGE 1:
Different
Different prayers, different ways,
Different words that people say,
But every heart can shine its light
Guided by what it feels is right
Hand in hand we stand as one,
Many paths but one same sun!
Year 1 Student, Hallsville Primary
KEY STAGE 2:
It is community
In a world that’s forever spinning fast,
Where strangers meet and dreams collide,
There’s something strong, that holds us near,
A gentle voice, we can all hear.
It hums in halls and sings in streets,
It smiles through every face it meets.
It’s found in hands, that lift, not break,
In the love we give, not what we take,
It caresses hearts and burns out hate,
It preaches inclusivity and puts diversity on every plate.
It’s glorious.
It’s giving.
It’s powerful.
It’s pure.
It is community.
Year 6 student, Christ Church CoE Primary School
KEY STAGE 3:
We are one
Community isn’t just a word teachers say
or something printed on a school poster.
It’s the moment you realise we’re all carrying something
a responsibility that creates change, a spark of happiness
and suddenly you understand: THIS is community.
I’ve seen people serve in so many different ways.
As a Muslim, I grew up watching my family give Zakat
quietly, without showing off,
believing that helping others is our duty and our faith.
My neighbour practises Tzedakah,
teaching me that giving brings balance
and makes sure no one is left behind.
At the gurdwara, I watched Langar being served
no questions asked, just “Sit. Eat. You’re welcome.”
That simple warmth stayed with me forever.
A Christian kid that I see packs donations because “that’s what
Jesus would’ve done.”
And many people with no religion still choose kindness
because the world is rough enough already.
Different paths, different beliefs,
yet somehow they all lead to the same place:
one person reaching out to another.
Because, Community isn’t about being the same
or praying the same
it’s about knowing none of us can always get through life alone.
Serving others builds bridges,
helps others feel noticed,
and reminds us that we all matter.
Together we grow, together we serve,
and together, we become are a community.
Year 9 student, 7 Kings School
KEY STAGE 4:
Together we serve
In the circle of creation,
where many beliefs belong,
we gather as one people,
each faith a different song.
From churches filled with sunlight,
to mosques that call to prayer,
from mandirs bright with blossoms,
to gurdwaras built to care.
From synagogues of ancient hope,
to quiet halls where Buddhists sit,
from Bahá’í paths of unity,
to every hearth where kindness lit.
Our practices may differ,
our teachings shaped by time,
yet every faith holds wisdom
in its heart’s enduring rhyme.
For service is our meeting place
the bond no boundary breaks;
it lives in every open hand,
in every step compassion takes.
We honor each tradition,
their stories, deep and wide;
but stronger still the beauty
found in walking side by side.
When Christians lift the lowly,
when Muslims share their light,
when Hindus serve with dharma’s grace,
when Sikhs stand up for right
When Jews repair the broken world,
when Buddhists breathe out peace,
when Bahá’ís call for unity,
our common hopes increase.
Together, we are harmony,
a chorus rich and true;
not many worlds apart—
but one world, seen anew.
So let our service echo
from every faith and land:
a testament to all we build
when hearts and hands expand.
For community is sacred
in the lives that we preserve—
and a brighter world is possible
when together, we all serve.
Year 10 student, 7 Kings School