The Queen's Commonwealth Essay Competition (QCEC) is the world's oldest international schools' writing contest, established by the Royal Commonwealth Society in 1883. With thousands of young people taking part each year, it is an important way to recognise achievement, elevate youth voices and develop key skills through creative writing.

Each year, entrants write on a theme that explores the Commonwealth's values, fostering an empathetic worldview in the next generation of leaders and encouraging young people to consider new perspectives on the challenges that the world faces. Themes have included the environment, community, inclusion, the role of youth leadership, and gender equality.

 In the past decade alone, this high-profile competition has engaged over 200,000 young people, over 5,000 schools and thousands of volunteer judges across the Commonwealth.

Past winners have gone on to become leaders in their fields, including our Senior Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Lee Hsien Loong, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Mei Fong, and the renowned author, the late Elspeth Huxley CBE. 

Congratulations to ALL participants in 2024. A special shout out to our four Gold Award recipients – Kitlyn Woo Yern Yu (Hu Enyu) 404, Cheyenne Lim Xi Min 303, Seow Geng He 304 and Tiana Shashi De Silva 304, selected out of a record-breaking 34,939 competition entries this year! We hope they are extremely proud of their achievement!

We encourage more to continue expressing your ideas through writing and harnessing the power that your voice holds within your immediate and global community. Read your fellow schoolmates' entries and be inspired. Remember, you can be the change you wish to see so please continue to write for a better world.

Xinmin EL Department Talent Development Team