The Children’s Laureate is an honorary post awarded to a renowned writer and/or illustrator working in the UK, who has made an exceptional contribution to the world of books for children, both in the UK and internationally.The first Children’s Laureate was Quentin Blake, appointed in 1999, and he was followed by Anne Fine, Michael Morpurgo, Jacqueline Wilson, Michael Rosen, Anthony Browne and Julia Donaldson. Each Children’s Laureate has taken the opportunity to promote a particular aspect of children’s books – these have included visual literacy, readers with disabilities, poetry, readership, storytelling, illustration and drama. Julia Donaldson’s tenure as Children’s Laureate will end during the summer of 2013, and a new appointment is now sought. The Steering Group seeks nominations from organisations concerned with children’s reading and books for a Children’s Laureate with the following qualities:
- an individual of exceptional talent in writing and/or illustration for children’s books
- an individual with a significant publishing record
- an individual with a significant profile in the industry and amongst her/his peers
- an individual with an active interest in raising the profile of books for children, and for their writers and illustrators
Nominating organisations are asked to consult their membership in order to arrive at their nominations of 1 author and 1 illustrator.UKLA National Council considered this at their meeting on 24th November and have a drawn up a shortlist and we urge all members to take part in a poll to ensure that the result genuinely reflects the views of the whole membership. Click here to complete the poll and vote for one of the following in both categories:Authors: Frank Cottrell Boyce, David Almond, Anthony Horowitz, Kevin Crossley-HollandIllustrators: Lauren Child, Nick Sharratt, Michael Foreman, Marcia Williams
