Who is the current Children's Laureate?
Anthony Browne is the current Children's Laureate.

What is the Children's Laureate?
The role of Children's Laureate, which has a bursary of £15,000, is awarded once every two years to an eminent writer or illustrator of children's books to celebrate outstanding achievement in their field. The appointment of a Children's Laureate acknowledges the importance of exceptional children's authors in creating the readers of tomorrow.

Where did the idea come from?
The idea for the Children's Laureate originated from a conversation between (the then) Poet Laureate Ted Hughes and children's writer Michael Morpurgo. The illustrator Quentin Blake was the first Children's Laureate (1999-2001), followed by the author Anne Fine (2001-2003), Michael Morpurgo (2003-2005), Jacqueline Wilson (2005-7), Michael Rosen (2007-2009) and most recently Anthony Browne (2009-11).

Find out more about previous laureates

Who selects the Children's Laureate?
The judges considered nominations for the Children's Laureate 2009-20011 from a range of organisations representing librarians, critics, writers, literature development workers and booksellers, including the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY). They also considered authors and illustrators nominated by children who voted online through this website.

The selection panel for the award is changed every two years. Selection panel members for 2009-11, chaired by Andrew Motion, Chair of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA), were:

> Sarah Clarke – Children’s Buying Manager, Waterstone’s

> Julia Eccleshare – Children’s Book Critic, Co-Director of the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education and representing the Children’s Laureate committee

> Nikki Heath – SLA School Librarian of the Year 2008, librarian at Werneth School, Stockport

> Jake Hope – Children’s Librarian for Lancashire Libraries and a freelance consultant

> Fiona Smith – representing the Federation of Children’s Book Groups

> Charles Butler – Senior Lecturer, University of the West of England

How is the Children's Laureateship administered?
The Children's Laureateship is administered by Booktrust, who support the Laureate, organise the four official Children's Laureate events per year, raise funds, manage the press and PR (via a consultant) and run the official website.

Please contact childrenslaureate@booktrust.org.uk

Who funds/supports the Children's Laureate?
The award is funded by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA). Waterstone’s are sole sponsors of the 2009-11 award, which is also supported by lead publisher sponsors Random House Children’s Books and Walker Books, and additional publisher sponsors Scholastic, Egmont, Macmillan Children’s Books, Puffin Books, Bloomsbury Children’s Books, HarperCollins Children’s Books, Templar Publishing, Oxford University Press, Simon and Schuster, Usborne Children’s Books, Barefoot Books, Andersen Press, Evans Brothers and Orion Children’s Books.