Historical Association Young Historian Awards 2026 (Secondary prizes)

The Historical Association, in collaboration with the Spirit of Normandy Trust, is running the Young Historian Awards 2026 (Secondary prizes). The competition invites young school and college-aged students to research, write and present original historical enquiries across a range of themes, particularly local history, the modern world and aspects of 20th-century history.

The 2026 competition is open for entries with a UK closing date of 17 July 2026 and an earlier closing date for overseas entries of 3 July 2026.

A number of named prizes are offered across age and qualification-aligned categories, including awards for Key Stage 3, GCSE and 16-19 (A Level / college) work, as well as specialist prizes for World War I and World War II topics and a prize for the best secondary school history magazine. The competition is intended to encourage critical, incisive historical scholarship among young people and to recognise outstanding individual research and writing.

Enquiries and requests for further particulars can be made to enquiries@history.org.uk. Teachers and students are encouraged to consult the Historical Association website for full entry rules, submission guidelines and category-specific requirements.