NI Primary Schools Top Letters' Awards

Ten primary school children from across Northern Ireland are prize winners in a letter writing competition run by Royal Mail.

There were three categories in the competition for ages 7-9, 10-11, and a Special Achievement award, for children who overcome particular difficulties to enter.

Winning the 7-9 age category was Mark McKenzie a pupil of Enniskillen Model Primary School who wrote to his hero J K Rowling.

In the 10-11 age category the winner was Lydia Sibley a pupil of Grange Park Primary School in Bangor who wrote to Matt Groening.

In the Special Achievement category the winner was Ethan Smylie a pupil of Drumgor Primary School in Craigavon who wrote to his hero Batman. All pupils wrote an imaginative letter to their hero which impressed judges.

Children were asked to write to their 1st Class Hero and entries from across Northern Ireland show that admiration for relatives is as strong as for sporting heroes, authors, fictional characters and pop stars.

Each category winner received a framed certificate, a set of Smilers stamps and a £50 book token, plus a £75-box of letter writing goodies to share with their classmates. Runners-up in each category each received a framed certificate and a £10 book token.

Barbara Roulston, Head of External Relations, Royal Mail Group in NI, said: "We need letter-writing for everything ranging from thank you letters, to job applications so it is excellent to see that children are learning this essential skill, addressing letters correctly - and using the all-important postcode.

"The standard of entries was very high which made the short listing process and selecting winners really difficult. Nationwide over 13,000 children took part so all the children who have won should feel very proud," she said.

The competition encouraged children to write a letter with a purpose to their hero or heroine, demonstrating imagination and creativity within a basic letter format.

The competition was designed as a class activity to fit with the school curriculum, to motivate children of all ages and abilities.

(BMcC/GK)