Launch of under 15s short story competition to raise funds for Great Ormond Street

We are encouraging children and young people 15 and under to submit an original 500-word short story – either round the theme of relaxation or inspiration. Young people are invited to let their imaginations run riot – and stories can be inspired from their own real-life experiences or something from the depths of their imaginations. We will publish a diverse collection of tales, so stories revolving around friendship, families, animals or even science fiction are all welcome, providing they slot into the themes above.

The competition will run through to early 2020.

Premier Inn experts and an esteemed panel of judges will crown national prize-winners in two categories:

• Under 10s
• Ages 11-15

In addition, there will be regional runners-up, celebrating literary brilliance across the UK.

Simon Ewins, Managing Director at Premier Inn UK said:

"We help millions of people to have a great night’s sleep and wake up ready for whatever the day holds, so we’re thrilled to launch our young people’s short story competition which will uncover exciting new stories to help encourage a restful night’s sleep – and get their day off to the best possible start. We’re all a huge fan of the traditional bedtime story and as a great night’s sleep is also all about setting you up for the day ahead, we thought it would be a fun twist to launch the UK’s first ‘wake up-time’ story collection. The UK is bursting with talented young people - we can’t wait to start receiving the stories and we hope children across the UK really enjoy getting involved.”

Amit Aggarwal, of Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity said:

“It’s brilliant that money raised through Premier Inn’s short story writing competition will benefit children and young people treated at GOSH, as stories that dive into the imagination can be a useful distraction for patients at the hospital. Writing and reading can help entertain children and young people during their treatment and empower them to express themselves too. We look forward to reading the fantastic entries to this competition.”

The winning wordsmiths work will then be published and the prize also includes a two-night stay at a Premier Inn of the winner’s choice.

Premier Inn, the UK’s top-rated hotel chain*, has proudly been supporting Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity since 2012, when it pledged to raise £7.5 million towards a brand new medical facility at the hospital. The Premier Inn Clinical Building, named in honour of the partnership, officially opened in January 2018, and provides state of the art facilities including new in-patient wards, operating theatres and a day case unit, to match the hospital’s world-class care. Most recently, Premier Inn pledged to raise a further £10 million to help fund a new Sight and Sound Centre, a specialist outpatient centre tailored to the needs of children with sight and hearing loss, which is due to open in 2020.

To submit a 500-word short story, young authors can submit their masterpieces by emailing  StoryPremierInn@golin.com

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