Naomh Pol News Issue 2

CELEBRATING WORLD BOOK DAY 2021!
Aidan Sands (1025): Our Twist on a Tale Winner!
At the beginning of the first lockdown our English Department offered
all Year 10 pupils the opportunity to enter a national writing
competition Twist on a Tale. The topic for 2020 was ‘Everyday
Heroes’, clearly influenced by an extraordinary year of disruption due
to the pandemic. This offered the opportunity to write about those
people who had made a difference to you during this strange and
unfamiliar time.
Over 1200 children and young people entered the competition with winning stories being picked
across 15 categories including Key Stage 1 through to Key Stage 5 and all regions in the UK. From
medical staff during the COVID-19 pandemic to supermarket delivery staff, parents, grandparents,
pets, community members and guide dogs, the everyday heroes came in all shapes and sizes!
Aidan Sands was awarded first prize in the Northern Ireland category after being selected from 1000+
entries! This was an absolutely amazing achievement! Aidan’s winning story champions the work of a
Tesco delivery driver and has been published in a brand new book, My Twist on a Tale: Everyday
Heroes Winning Stories. The book was released to celebrate World Book Day and is available to
download on Pearson’s website. In addition to his own hard copy, Aidan was awarded a certificate
and £250 book tokens.
Aidan’s wonderful story focuses on the work of his local Tesco delivery driver named Paul, who, while
seeming like an ordinary man on the outside, has in fact ‘done as much as anyone at a time when
everyone was suffering.’ Aidan describes how Paul not only saves he and his family by delivering food
to their house, but brings food to their vulnerable 93-year-old neighbour.
In an uplifting finish, Aidan explains why he sees Paul as a local superhero. He is a man ‘who rescued
countless members of my community when we were trapped in our homes… His warm heart lights up
people’s days, just like the headlights of his van.’
Katy Lewis, Head of English, Drama and Languages at Pearson said: “Aidan should be extremely proud
of the story he has written. His writing skills are outstanding. It was an incredibly difficult decision
choosing from the 1000+ stories we received, as they were all fascinating to read, but Aidan’s piece
really stood out and deserves its place alongside the other 13 winners who have built a collection of
short stories that celebrate a diverse and modern-day Britain.”
“Following an extraordinary year of disruption, we wanted to give children the opportunity to write
their own tales of people who have made a difference to them. It is so important that children and
young people feel represented in the literature they read and the stories they write and so in writing
their entries, whether that be a story about a hero in their local community, a key worker making a
difference during the COVID-19 pandemic, a campaigner, a family member or friend that inspires them
or even a hero from their imagination, we wanted children and young people to get creative and
reflect their own personality, location and experiences as they bought their local crusader to life. The
results were fascinating. Everyone who entered should be extremely proud of their hard work and
creative flair.”