ORGANISERS of a search to find the best young writers in Dorset say they have unearthed talent good enough to rival adults in the world famous Bridport Prize competition.

Funding from the Arts Council led to the revival of the Bridport Prize Junior for 2007 with 250 youngsters vying to win. The short story competition was open to all children aged from eight to 18 in Dorset.

The category for 15-18 year olds was won by former Sir John Colfox pupil Rosa Van Hensbergen, who now attends Colyton Grammar School, with her story Today is Winter. Colfox pupil Joe Nava came second.

The 11-14 years group was won by Ethne Grey Still, of Beaminster School, with her story Tumbleweeds and Tuberoses.

Among the runners up in the 8-11 years category were Anya Loudon of Burton Bradstock School and Acacia Rose Rudd of Symondsbury School, while Simon Middleton of Colfox was a runner up in the 15-18 age group.

The competition was organised by Dorset County Council in partnership with the Bridport Prize and Bridport Arts Centre with the aim of encouraging children and young people to explore creative writing.

Josie Hickin, literature development officer at Dorset County Council, said: "They all wrote some incredible stories and the quality of work was really high, especially some of the older students who could easily take on some of the entries in the adult competition."

Entries were judged anonymously.

Miss Hickin said: "The whole thing was done in the same way as the adult competition and was completely anonymous so the judge didn't know where they were from or if they were a boy or girl. They could write on any subject. Children and young people have some amazing ingenuity and we didn't want to rein that in."

Topics included demons, fantasy, a devil with a liking for hamburgers, a detective searching for a lost parrot, relationships and period stories. One youngster even chose to have their story narrated by a monkey.

Miss Hickin said: "The funding only covered this year and we have got to think next about whether we can continue it, but it has been a great success."

The competition was judged by Bridport-based children's author Laura Matthews, who writes as LS Matthews.

The three winners each won £100 plus a day with writer Brenda Read-Brown for their school.

There were also cash prizes for the runners up with all the youngsters seeing their story published in the Bridport Prize Junior book.

A prize giving ceremony followed by afternoon tea was held at Bridport Arts Centre on Saturday.

* Copies of the Bridport Prize Junior anthology are available from Bridport Arts Centre, cost £7.50.

FULL LIST OF WINNERS:
8-11 years:
1 Casey Davies, Highcliffe Primary School with Living Dead
2 Adrian Hobbs, Lytchett Matravers Primary School, Adventure Island
3 Ben Carretta, Thornford School, Revenge
Runners up (alphabetical order): Eleanor Harding and Ross Hounslow of Thornford, Anya Loudon of Burton Bradstock Primary School, Mylo Scott Reilly of Milldown Primary, and Acacia Rose Rudd, of Symondsbury Primary School.

11-14 years:
1 Ethne Grey Still, of Beaminster School with Tumbleweeds and Tuberoses
2 Eloise MacDonald with Rabbits, Cabbages, Heather and Love
3 Daniel Mason, of Lockyers Middle School with Argent's Story
Runners up: Heidi Brown of Bournemouth School for Girls, Jack Richard Case of Highcliffe School, Abi Colclough of Lytchett Minster School, James Green of Royal Manor Arts College and Emily of St Mary's, Shaftesbury.

15-18 years:
1 Rosa Van Hensbergen of Colyton Grammar School with Today is Winter
2 Joe Nava of the Sir John Colfox School with The Caretaker
3 Nippy Wallis of Canford School with The Dying of the Light
Runners up: Jade Emmons of Parkstone Grammar, Camilla Mina Laake of Queen Elizabeth Upper School, David Levesley of Highcliffe School, Simon Middleton of Sir John Colfox School and Zoe Wareham of Queen Elizabeth Upper School.