Nine young people from across the county have been commended for their artistic designs depicting what Staffordshire means to them.

The competition is one of many events taking place across the county as part of the celebrations for Staffordshire Day on Thursday 1 May.

Winners of We Are Staffordshire’s Design a Plate for Staffordshire Day Competition were given the opportunity to visit Gladstone Pottery Museum in Longton to see their winning designs as plates. They also got the chance to take part in an activity and learned all about the ceramic heritage of Stoke-on-Trent.

Twenty primary schools from across the county have taken part in the competition, with Year 4 and 5 pupils being asked to design plates based on what they love about Staffordshire. Over 300 votes have been cast to choose the winners.

Louisa Shaw, Head of Place Marketing at We Are Staffordshire said:

“Congratulations to all our well deserving winners. We’re thrilled to see their designs come to life and pleased to be able to share them with people across the county.

“There were so many fantastic entries and in some locations, we’re going to be showcasing runners-up entries as well.  Through the project, we wanted to raise civic pride and awareness among young people of the amazing things our county has to offer, in addition to sharing information about Staffordshire Day and why we celebrate today.

“Thanks to Duchess China 1888 who have created the plates for us and to the team at Gladstone for hosting our presentation today.” 

Congratulations to:

• Gabriela Constantin, Chesterton Primary School, Newcastle
• Harry Cartlidge, Cheadle Primary School
• Primrose Castagna-Curtis, St Gabriels Catholic Primary School, Tamworth
• Luca Ebrahimi, St Mary’s Catholic Academy, Norton
• Sofia, Horninglow Primary School, Burton upon Trent
• Mila McGeown, Tillington Manor Primary School, Stafford
• Isla Heminsley, The John Bamford Primary School, Rugeley
• Tom West, St Michael's Primary School, Lichfield 
• Natasha Harry, Perton Primary Academy

Plates will be displayed in the coming months at locations across the county including the Potteries Museum & Art Gallery, Burton Brewhouse Arts Centre, Tamworth Castle and Lichfield Cathedral.

Hannah Ault DL, Chair of We Are Staffordshire’s Place Board and Managing Director of Valentine Clays, met the winners and presented them with their plates, along with a gift bag of clay for them to make their own creations, courtesy of Valentine Clays.

Hannah said:

"As Chair of We Are Staffordshire and President of Ceramics UK, I am absolutely thrilled to be celebrating the incredible creativity of our young people through this exciting project.

“Staffordshire is the proud home of ceramics, and there’s no better place to showcase these fantastic designs than right here in the heart of our county. These young winners are helping to carry forward Staffordshire’s world-famous creative spirit, and I couldn't be prouder.

“Encouraging the next generation to develop a passion for ceramics is vital for keeping our traditions alive while inspiring fresh innovation for the future.  This project has been a wonderful reminder of everything that makes our county such a special place to live, work, and create."

The first official Staffordshire Day took place in 2016, the year the county turned 1,000 years old. 1 May was chosen as the date through a public poll as it is the anniversary of Josiah Wedgwood setting up his pottery company in 1759.