Andy Croft, publisher of Smokestack Books and poetry editor of the Morning Star, and Fran Lock, associate editor of Culture Matters, will be judging the Bread and Roses poetry award, organised by Culture Matters. The organisers say: “There can’t be much doubt about meaningful themes this year. We face a cost-of-living crisis – rising prices for food, fuel and energy, with the value of benefits going down, and increased pressure on jobseekers.

"We’ll see an increase in poverty in many areas of the country and amongst many communities. Homelessness and poor health are still major threats to working people, including mental health problems, exacerbated by the recent pandemic. On top of these economic and social problems, we're faced with political problems: the lies, deception, hypocrisy, incompetence, cronyism and callous lack of compassion of our political rulers.”

There are five prizes of £100 for the best poems. There will be a free downloadable anthology of images and poetry, and an online and printed version of the anthology. The deadline is 30 September. More details