A TOP poet has visited a Year 9 pupil and her class to give a poetry masterclass.

Aamna Rafaqat, 13, from Bradford Girl’s Grammar, won the Kirkgate Shopping Centre’s Young War Poet competition in November for her poem - The Fate of Soldiers.

Part of her prize was a workshop run by poet and author Anthony Anaxagorou, who was also one of the judges in the competition.

He visited the school on Monday to give a poetry workshop to Aamna and her classmates, with the aim of inspiring and educating them on the importance and impact of poetry.

Mr Anaxagorou, who also devises programmes to help engage students across the UK, said: “I was impressed with Aamna’s poem, ‘The Fate of Soldiers’, it was emotive and incredibly well organised, capturing the trepidation of soldiers beautifully.

"Bradford clearly has some incredible writing talent coming through from the next generation and it is exciting to not only see this happen but also be involved in highlighting and exploring it.”

Aamna said: “I was so happy to win Kirkgate Shopping’s Young War Poet competition and having the opportunity to perform my entry in front of my family at the centre.

"I really enjoyed writing my entry, ‘The Fate of Soldiers’, and couldn’t wait to meet with Anthony again for the workshop and learn more about the spoken-word as a whole. My classmates were also very excited.”

The annual initiative run by Kirkgate Shopping, which last year partnered with Reading Matters (now operating under the name of Beanstalk) and Anthony Anaxagorou, aims to support the region’s literacy development by giving children the opportunity to celebrate their ancestors by writing a poem for Remembrance Day.

Catherine Riley, centre manager at Kirkgate, said: “We were so impressed by the writing talent from the region’s youngsters this year and selecting only three winners was a challenge. We were moved by the way entrants were able to express themselves through poetry and become immersed in the country’s history.

“Being able to offer a workshop of this nature to Bradford Girls’ Grammar School as part of the overall prize is a true joy, as it pushes the passion and love for poetry further, in an exciting environment. It will hopefully also encourage more people to become involved in next year’s competition.”