Winning poem recalls boat trips with father

George Mower’s poem, Shoreham Harbour, will now go on display at Southwick railway station, where it will be unveiled on Friday.

The poem affectionately recalls George’s time as a child growing up around the port and the many trips he made with his dad on boats up and down the river.

Organisers said a huge variety of poems had been sent in, with some entries being posted from as far away as Texas.

Second place went to Jake Howard, 10, a pupil at Mile Oak Primary School. One of the youngest contestants, he impressed judges with his poem, Our Local Port.

Communications assistant Katie Orchin said: “Jake’s brilliantly-written poem accurately describes Shoreham Port from early Roman times through to present day.”

Shoreham Port accounts assistant Alex Lowden was surprised and excited to be awarded third place, having anonymously submitted her poem at the start of the competition.

Finance director Sara Bassett congratulated the winners. “Choosing the top three entries was incredibly hard due to the high standard of poems received,” she said.

“It is wonderful to be able to celebrate local talent and strengthen our relationship with the local community.”

A poetry launch is being held at Southwick railway station on Friday at 11am, when port chief executive Rodney Lunn will unveil the winner.

People are invited to the ceremony, on platform one, to see Mr Mower’s poem take pride of place on the station wall and meet some of the poets, as well as a team from Shoreham Port.

Mr Lunn said: “We were thrilled with the response to the competition and very much look forward to meeting everyone involved at the launch on Friday.

“Working on projects with the community has proved an excellent way to engage with residents and encourage creativity locally.

“Thank you to all who entered the competition and showed their support and many congratulations to the winners.”

Shoreham Port has been working in partnership with Southern Rail on a station enhancement scheme since 2012 and winning artworks in the first competition were unveiled there last January.