Aspiring poets in St. Kitts and Nevis are being encouraged to showcase their creativity as the New Branches Poetry Competition 2026 officially opens to students and teachers across the Caribbean.

Hosted by Macmillan Education Caribbean, the competition invites original poetry submissions from primary and secondary school students, as well as teachers, with winning entries earning publication in a special poetry anthology.

Participants can write on themes including life by the sea in the Caribbean, festivals, Caribbean food and culture, community life, Caribbean voices, and journeys, roots and belonging. Entries must be submitted by World Literacy Day on September 8^th, 2026.

St. Kitts and Nevis has enjoyed notable success in previous editions of the competition. Among the 2025 winners were: teacher Sasha Maynard of Charles E. Mills Secondary School, whose poem “Christmas in St. Kitts” captured the Teachers Overall Winning title. The Federation also produced several runners-up, including “The Cheetah” by K’Ronjae Liburd of the Joycelyn Liburd Primary School and “The Untold Story of the Sea” by Cheyenne K.V. Maynard of Sandy Point Primary School.

For more information, persons can visit the publisher’s website: https://macmillan-caribbean.com/blogs.