1) This competition is organised by Coram Shakespeare Schools Foundation (Registered Charity No. 1164676), part of the group of charities of The Thomas Coram Foundation for Children, known today- and hereafter referred to- as ‘Coram’ (Registered Charity No. 312278).

2) What You Will is a creative competition open to young people aged between 8-25 years old on 31 July 2023, inviting them to create a new speech for a character in a Shakespeare play.

3) Entries will be judged within the following age categories:

  • 8-11 years old,
  • 12-16 years old,
  • 17-21 years old, and
  • 22-25 years old (as of 31st July 2023).

4) Categories will be judged in an inclusive manner, both in line with our mission as a charity, and guided by legislation such as the Equality Act 2010. Please inform us in your entry if there are any other factors we should consider when judging the young person’s submission – for example, if English is their second language, or if they have any special educational needs. Judges will take this into account when shortlisting submissions.

5) Entries must be the original work of the entrant and must be no longer than: 300 words in length (written submissions) or 120 seconds in length (performance submissions). Entries must be submitted via the What You Will submission form on the Coram SSF website. We can only receive entries in the following file formats: pdf, doc, docx, xls, xlsx, csv, txt, rtf, html, zip, mp3, wma, mpg, flv, avi, jpg, jpeg, png, gif, mp4, mpeg4, mov

6) Entrants must enter individually. All work must be created by the entrant only and must not infringe the rights of any other party. Only one entry per person is permitted. If more than one entry is submitted, only the entrant’s first submission will be considered.

7) We ask that all entries are submitted in one of the following languages:

  • English
  • Cymraeg
  • Gàidhlig
  • Gaeilge
  • British Sign Language (BSL)

As mentioned in clause 4, entrants are encouraged to acknowledge if they have created their speech in a second language when submitting their entry.

8) Coram SSF is committed to safeguarding the welfare of children and young people and adheres to the Coram Group Safeguarding Policy & Procedures. To read this full policy, click here. The personal data provided to us will be used for the purposes of administering the competition and in accordance with Coram’s Data Protection Policy.

9) Personal information will be stored until 31 July 2028. After this date, personal information will be deleted and submissions will be kept anonymously (with the age of the young person at the time of submission) for as long as there is a business need. The submissions will be stored electronically by Coram SSF. Coram SSF’s Privacy Policy can be found here.

10) Coram SSF is committed to complying with the UK General Data Protection Regulations (“UK GDPR”) and to upholding principles of good practice of storage and handling of data. Coram SSF will only use the information that it collects about data subject in accordance with UK GDPR and the Privacy & Electronic Communications Regulations 2003.

11) Coram SSF does not collect children’s data to directly market to children.

12) We will ensure that any adult staff or volunteer involved in the delivery of the What You Will competition holds an active enhanced disclosure check from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), which deems them suitable to work with children. They will also be required to agree to the terms of the Coram SSF Safeguarding Code of Behaviour and Procedures.

13) Work submitted must not contain any offensive, obscene, defamatory or any other unsuitable material. Entries must be suitable to be broadcast and published for a child audience. Work may, as Shakespeare’s own work, contain challenging content. Entrants are encouraged to indicate any trigger warnings to support this material when submitting their entry.

14) Entries cannot be returned, so please remember to retain a copy.

15) Entrants retain the copyright in their entries but their parent or guardian grants to Coram SSF a perpetual non-exclusive royalty-free license to publish, broadcast and post the entry online (across all media) and on any other platform yet to be envisaged. This license will be deemed to include all the necessary rights and permissions to enable such use by Coram SSF to fulfil the prizes and complete the administration of this competition, key to which being the rights to publish the entry in a future compilation book, website or digital resource, including those held by Cambridge University Press & Assessment (headline sponsor of the competition).

16) Entrants or their parent or guardian agree that, in line with the rights granted in clause 15, Coram SSF may at its sole discretion edit, adapt, abridge or translate the entry for the purposes listed above.

17) Entries will be judged on the following criteria:

  • Creativity - We want you to be playful when creating your speech. Don’t be afraid of putting your stamp on Shakespeare and explore what’s possible and meaningful to you.
  • Characterisation - How you bring life to the character and show their personality
  • Sense of Voice - How do you make the speech uniquely yours?
  • Character Arc - The journey that the character goes through during the speech.
  • Engagement of the Audience - We want the audience to be hooked to your speech from start to finish. How are you going to capture their attention?

18) CSSF will provide, on its website, several example speeches from staff, Patrons, Supporters, Partners and our wider network to illustrate how we envisage young people creating content for the competition and demonstrate the breadth of formats and mediums that are available.

19) The competition assessment will consist of two rounds:

  • The first round will be shortlisted by staff and supporters of Coram SSF. Each shortlister will receive a batch of anonymised (identified by number references and age category only) submissions to score using the criteria above. Each shortlister will judge several submissions along with details of the criteria and how to score the submissions. Each submission will be judged by two shortlisters. Scores will be aggregated and the six highest scoring submissions from each age category will be put through to the next round.
  • The top 24 entries will then be judged by a guest panel at a second round, including professional actors, authors, presenters and poets, creative professionals and members of Coram SSF’s Youth Panel. The judges will be finalised nearer the date but will not be Coram SSF staff. There will be one third place, one second place and one winner for each age category.

20) By submitting an entry, entrants agree to these rules and accept that the judges' decision is final. Coram SSF will notify shortlisted entries in September 2023 using the contact information provided with the entry. Further proof-of-age, identity and eligibility may be requested at this stage.

21) The top three speeches in each age category will be shared/performed at the What You Will Celebration Gala at the Criterion Theatre in Picadilly Circus, London on the evening of 27 November 2023 (a total of 12 speeches). All 24 shortlisted entries will be invited to attend the Gala. Full names of the finalists and overall winners will be announced during this ceremony, subject to parental consent. Coram SSF is not able to meet travel or accommodation costs associated with attending the gala ceremony for all 24 top entries. However, limited bursaries may be available, and Coram SSF will discuss this on a case-by-case basis with those entrants who are shortlisted.

22) Prizes will be awarded to the 24 shortlisted candidates. Prizes will include, but not be limited to: All shortlisted candidates will receive a £10 National Book Token voucher.

  • Third place in each category will receive a What You Will trophy and a £25 Love-to-Shop voucher.
  • Second place in each category will receive a What You Will trophy and £50 Love-to-Shop voucher.
  • Winners in each category will receive What You Will trophy and £100 Love-to-Shop voucher.

    • Winners who attend an educational setting within the 8 – 11, 12 – 16 and 17 – 21 age groups will receive a £1000 is CSSF programmes credit for their setting. This credit can be put towards:

    (i) a place in our Theatre Festival; or
    (ii) a Film Festival & half-day In-School Workshop Package; or
    (iii) a Full Day CSSF Student Workshop

    Further prizes and awards may be announced during the competition.

23) Coram SSF retains the right to disqualify any submissions that breach these Terms and Conditions.

24) Coram SSF reserves the right to amend these Terms and Conditions or cancel this competition at any stage, if deemed necessary in its opinion, or if circumstances arise outside of its control. Coram SSF will notify all entrant of any changes to these Terms and Conditions, or cancellation as soon as is practicable.

25) These Terms and Conditions are governed by the laws of England and Wales.