The BBC National Short Story Award with Cambridge University (NSSA) and BBC Young Writers’ Award with Cambridge University (YWA) have opened for submissions.
Di Speirs, judge of the BBC National Short Story Award since its launch, is this year’s Chair of Judges. Joining her on the panel are 2022 NSSA winner Saba Sams, whose highly acclaimed debut novel Gunk was published last year, two former NSSA shortlistees, Tahmima Anam (2016) and Will Eaves (2017), and Costa Best First Novel Award winner, Andrew Micheal Hurley.
Since launching twenty-one years ago, the NSSA has enriched both the careers of writers and the wider literary landscape. Some of Britain’s most renowned writers have won or been shortlisted for the award including Hilary Mantel, Zadie Smith, William Trevor, Jon McGregor, Deborah Levy, Naomi Alderman, Kamila Shamsie, Tessa Hadley, Mark Haddon, Sarah Hall, Helen Oyeyemi, Lucy Caldwell and Rose Tremain.
The NSSA is one of the most prestigious awards for a single short story, with the winning author receiving £15,000, and four further shortlisted authors £600 each. The stories are broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and available to listen to on BBC Sounds and additionally published in an anthology by Comma Press. The 2025 winner of the BBC National Short Story Award was Colwill Brown for ‘You Cannot Thead a Moving Needle,’ a compelling and heartbreaking story exploring the long-term effects of trauma told in South Yorkshire dialect.
The writers shortlisted for the YWA have their stories narrated by an actor and recorded for BBC Sounds and published in an anthology. Previous winners include Lottie Mills, Tabitha Rubens, Elena Barham, Atlas Weyland Eden and Lulu Frisson, with 17-year-old Rebecca Smith from Sheffield winning the Award in 2025 for her story ‘Scouse’s Run.’
Professor Deborah Prentice, Vice-Chancellor of University of Cambridge, said: "We are delighted to continue to support the BBC’s national short story awards, which do so much to encourage and nurture brilliant writing talent and creativity from across the country."
Key Award Dates
- The deadline for receipt of entries for the BBC National Short Story Award with Cambridge University is 9am (GMT) Monday 16th March 2026.
- The deadline for receipt of entries for the BBC Young Writers’ Award with Cambridge University is 9am (GMT) Monday 23rd March 2026.
- The shortlist for the BBC National Short Story Award with Cambridge University will be announced on BBC Radio 4’s Front Row at 7.15pm on Thursday 10th September 2026. The shortlist for the BBC Young Writers’ Award with Cambridge University will be announced on Radio 1’s Life Hacks from 4pm on Sunday 13th September 2026.
- The stories shortlisted for the BBC National Short Story Award with Cambridge University will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 from Monday 14th to Friday 18th September 2026 from 3.30pm to 4pm.
- The announcement of the winners of the two awards will be broadcast live from the award ceremony at BBC Broadcasting House on BBC Radio 4’s Front Row from 7.15pm Tuesday 29th September 2026.
For more information, including how to enter, please visit www.bbc.co.uk/nssa for the National Short Story Award and www.bbc.co.uk/ywa for the Young Writers' Award.
The prestigious awards, supported by Cambridge University, are celebrating their 21st anniversary with judges including Saba Sams, David Almond & Lily Fontaine announced.
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