Some excellent children's books have scooped prizes lately. Here’s our pick of awards news that you should know about:
Alice Oseman received the YA Book Prize Special Achievement Award for their trail-blazing graphic novel series, Heartstopper at this year's London Book Fair. It was a pleasure to hear Alice speak at the Fair, where they reminisced about time spent in their school library as a teenager, 'bingeing' on manga and graphic novels. The sixth, and concluding, book in the Heartstopper series is set for release in July 2026.
Alice Oseman speaking on the Main Stage at London Book Fair
Also at London Book Fair, this year's Carnegie Medal shortlists were announced. 16 books have been shortlisted in total, with eight in each category for the Carnegie Medal for Writing and the Carnegie Medal for Illustration; whittled down from 37 longlisted titles by the judging panel, which includes 14 children’s and youth librarians from CILIP’s Youth Libraries Group. The awards aim to spark a lifelong passion for reading by connecting more children with books that will change lives. Identity, belonging, relationships, and the meaning of home emerged as themes throughout both Medal shortlists, with creative storytelling ranging from the deeply personal to the historic and mythical. See the full lists.
Peters Children's Book of the Year: Lucy Strange won the overall award for her chilling ghost story The Boy at the Window, published by dyslexia-friendly Barrington Stoke, which also took the Junior Fiction category prize. The awards are voted for by UK school librarians, teachers and public libraries. Neil Sharpson and Dan Santat's Don't Trust Fish was voted Picture Book winner for its laugh-out-loud humour, while Tamsin Winter's I Dare You, a modern-day cautionary tale, triumphed in Teen Fiction. Kate Winter took the Non-Fiction prize for The Cave Explorer, a retelling of the discovery of the Lascaux cave paintings in 1940s France.
The shortlist has been announced for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize 2026, with the winners coming next Thursday 26th March. Welsh writer and illustrator Huw Aaron has been nominated twice, for graphic novel Unfairies (Younger Readers) and Sleep Tight, Disgusting Blob (Illustrated Books). The Older Readers category includes Solo by Gráinne O'Brien and Til Death, a mystery thriller by Busayo Matuluko.
Three of the four Waterstones Illustrated Books shortlistees also appear on the 18-book Klaus Flugge Prize longlist, which recognises the most exciting new picture book illustrators. The overlapping titles are Milo and the Mountain by Jamie Carroll, The Great Green Island by Becky Colvin, and My Rice is Best, illustrated by Maxwell A. Oginni and written by Selina Brown. Judges include 2025 Klaus Flugge Prize-winner Emma Farrarons and award-winning author-illustrator Rob Biddulph.
Six women were crowned winners at the Inclusive Books for Children Awards ceremony at London's Southbank Centre, sharing a £30,000 prize fund and a showcase slot at Hay Festival in May. The prize, launched in 2023, celebrates the best UK-published inclusive children's books for ages one to nine. Winners ranged in format from Braille to graphic novel: Let's Play by Alex Strick, Annie Kubler and Sarah Dellow (Child's Play); The Beautiful Layers of Me by Sophia Payne and Ruchi Mhasane (Walker Books); and Supa Nova by Chanté Timothy (Nosy Crow). Judge Mei Matsuoka said: "These books are pushing boundaries and opening pathways into worlds that need to be represented more. I was delighted to see how inclusivity was incorporated into sweet, funny and engaging stories without overpowering them."
This year also saw a new Children's Choice Award, voted for by primary school children across the UK. Their winners were Won't Go! by Sumana Seeboruth and Fotini Tikkou (Barefoot Books), Cloud Boy by Greg Stobbs (OUP), and Supa Nova by Chanté Timothy (Nosy Crow).
Supa Nova is also longlisted for the 2026 Jhalak Children's & YA Prize, which includes 12 titles from picture books to YA. Judges are Sita Brahmachari, Lanisha Butterfield and Christine Pillainayagam and the shortlist will be announced on 14 April, with the winner revealed on 10 June.
British Book Awards: The children's shortlists have been announced for this year's Nibbies. In Children's Non-Fiction and Illustrated, My Rice is Best appears again alongside Oh Dear, Look What I Got! by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury. Four further titles span themes including the human body, science, creativity and emotional complexity. The Children's Fiction shortlist includes blockbuster titles like Lottie Brooks, Skandar and Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games prequel Sunrise on the Reaping, alongside Lauren Roberts' Fearless, MC Grammar's The Adventures of Rap Kid, and SF Williamson's YA debut A Language of Dragons. Andersen Press, David Fickling Books, DK, Farshore, Magic Cat, Nosy Crow, Penguin Random House Children's, Scholastic, Simon & Schuster and Usborne are all nominated for this year's Children's Publisher of the Year.
CLiPPA (CLPE Poetry Award) 2026: Now in its 23rd year, CLiPPA has announced that writer and poet Nicola Davies, the new Children's Laureate for Wales, is chair of the judges for this year's award. She is joined by 2025 CLiPPA winner Colette Hiller, Carnegie Medals Awards Executive Jake Hope, Apples and Snakes CEO Lisa Mead, and CLPE Lead Advisory Teacher Anjali Patel. Schools can register for the Shadowing Scheme now and are invited to join CLPE online on Wednesday 15 April to watch the live shortlist announcement, with performances by the shortlisted poets. The award ceremony will take place at the National Theatre on Thursday 9 July.
Don't forget to explore the 12 incredible titles on the 2026 Information Book Award shortlist, covering everything from why we sleep to where we came from. We've created free Book Club resources for every book, perfect for exploring with your pupils and guiding your IBA Book Club conversations. Children's Choice voting is open until Friday 5 June! Find your free resources and cast your votes.