Do you know young people with something to say, a gift for writing, or a unique perspective on the world? Do you want a completely free programme to support your creative learning offer and boost writing skills?
The Royal Court Young Playwrights Award is a free, open-access national competition for anyone aged 13–18 in the UK interested in writing a play. It’s an excellent opportunity for English departments, drama teachers and creative writing leads to support emerging writers with high-quality, ready-to-use resources.
Any school or group can run their own playwriting course or use the resources in classrooms. The best part is teachers and facilitators don’t need any specialist knowledge in playwriting — the Royal Court Theatre has created a full pack for schools to help.
The Guidance for Teachers resource has all the information school staff need to get started. The adaptable PowerPoint lesson plans, with embedded videos from professional playwrights, can be used for an eight-lesson block — or teachers can set up their own Playwriting Club, using the free video workshop course. All these resources can be accessed online.
Everyone who enters will receive personal feedback. Winning plays will be performed by professional actors in a festival of staged readings at the Royal Court Theatre, and published in a special edition by Nick Hern Books. As part of the festival, the theatre will also host a prizegiving, with unique trophies for every winning writer.
Find out more and access all these fabulous resources here. Sign up for the Young Playwrights newsletter here for further updates. If you have a question, check out the FAQs or get in touch at youngplaywrights@royalcourttheatre.com
Key dates:
Competition Entry: 27 January – 22 April 2026
Young Playwrights Festival and Awards: 9 –11 July 2026
Featured image courtesy of Felix Pilgrim