Call Submissions: Our Right to Thrive Poetry Competition

Our Right to Thrive (ORTT) is a creative writing and multimedia poetry project led by disabled artist Ivan Riches. The initiative is for disabled writers and focuses on building community, sharing experiences of ableism, and using poetry and stories to support empowerment. Through webinars with disabled speakers and an ORTT blog, the project explores disability pride, challenges discrimination, and celebrates disabled people’s right to thrive.

We invite disabled poets to submit original poetry exploring disability, identity, justice, resistance, and thriving. We aim to publish poetry submissions on the Our Right to Thrive blog.

Alongside the offer to publish your poetry online, we are also offering three prizes for poems on the theme of ‘our right to thrive’.

• First prize: £100
• Second prize: £50
• Third prize: £25

The competition seeks poems that speak honestly, creatively, and powerfully about disabled lives – in all their complexity. We welcome work from poets of all backgrounds, at any stage of their writing journey, and across all forms and styles of poetry.

Poems may respond to one or more of the following themes:

We’re looking for poetry that is:

• Honest and original
• Politically aware or deeply personal (or both)
• Angry, tender, defiant, joyful, or reflective
• Rooted in lived experience

There is no “right” way to write about disability – all voices, styles, and approaches are welcome.

• Poems must be original
  . If the poems have been previously published, you will be asked to provide details.
• We will accept up to 2 poems per person.
• Poems must be a minimum of 5 lines and a maximum of 25 lines each
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• Poets must be based in the UK.

We are committed to making this competition as accessible as possible. If you need any adjustments or would prefer to submit in a format that’s more accessible for you, please contact us at adminine or .

All selected poems responding to the above submission themes will be published on the DAO ‘Our Right To Thrive’ blog. [Please note we cannot guarantee that we can faithfully replicate complex non-linear or visual poetry layouts].

If enough poems are sent into the Our Right To Thrive competition, DAO will look to publish an ‘Our Right To Thrive’ anthology via an online digital platform.

All poems will be read with care and respect. Judges will be looking for:

• A clear, original voice – poems that feel honest and true to the writer
• Connection to the themes – thoughtful responses to lived experience, barriers, resistance, pride, or thriving
• Effective use of language – purposeful word choices, imagery, rhythm, or form (traditional or experimental)
• Emotional impact – poems that move, challenge, or stay with the reader
• Overall strength – how well the poem works as a complete piece

We are not looking for “perfect” poems. We value honesty, creativity, risk‑taking, and lived experience over technical polish. Poems may be raw, experimental, political, gentle, or celebratory. All styles and approaches are welcome.

All poems will be read with care and respect by poets Ivan Riches and Kuli Kohli.

Please upload your poem via the online submission form.

Submissions close on 23 February 2026
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Final decisions will be made during March 2026.