Schoolgirl Molly is prize-winning poet

A Spalding schoolgirl has won a cash prize by taking top place in a county-wide poetry competition.

Molly Hallissey (11) was in year six at St Norbert’s Primrary School when she wrote the poem for the Lincolnshire Chalk Streams Festival competition. She has since started at Spalding High School.

Molly’s mum Liz, said when Molly found out she’d won the £150 prize, she was amazed and couldn’t believe that she had won her age category out of everybody that entered.

“She has always enjoyed creative writing and especially loved the challenge of creating a poem for a competition,” Liz added.

Molly’s classmate Weronika Ragan won the runner-up prize in a competition with more than 100 entries.

The competition was part of the Lincolnshire Chalk Streams Project, the third and final festival funded by the Heritage Lottery and Lincolnshire County Council.

Lincolnshire Chalk Streams Monitoring Officer Will Bartle said: “The festival was designed to provide free events for children and families that allowed for different interactive fun to encourage children and families to engage with their chalk streams.”