The Laurie Herring Prize for Critical Response
The Laurie Herring Prize 2025 Awards Ceremony
Thank you to everyone who submitted an entry to the 2025 Laurie Herring Prize. Your words surprised and delighted, provoked and entertained.
Years 7 and 8
FIRST PRIZE
Olivia Gerrard: Ballroom dancing - a social superpower!
SECOND PRIZE
Timothy Madders: Wild Swimming
THIRD PRIZE
Harry Putnam: A critical response to air up water bottles
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Anika Mishra, Tammy Okubute
Years 9 and 10
FIRST PRIZE
Isaac Schaad: The many faces of Joan of Arc
SECOND PRIZE
Gabrielle Abotsie: A critical response to the anti-woke
THIRD PRIZE
Joseph Ladbrooke: It’s lonely at the top: Premier League vs Championship
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Samuel Berry, Louis Cawlesy, Kimberley Chung, James Gilbert, Toby Hankinson, Poppy Harding, Lily-Beth Hollinger, Thomas Jenkins, Jayson Lau, George Tooley, Syed Ubaydan
Years 11 to 13
FIRST PRIZE
Atticus Dewe
SECOND PRIZE
Samantha Welham
THIRD PRIZE
Ilya Higginson
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Christo Antony, Mia Atkinson, Anya Chaturvedi, Krishna Dhatariya, Ben Griffiths, Evie Murray, Olive Sainsbury, Elsa Spalding
With thanks to Susannah Hart for judging this year’s competition, and to Justine Picardie for presenting the awards.