A PERCEPTIVE and shocking account of the plight of refugees has won a poetry prize judged by the family of William Wordsworth.

Deep Waters by 12-year-old Mayumi Singh is the winner of the Rydal Mount poetry prize for young people, organised annually by the poet’s descendants.

It describes the terrifying and tragic journey of refugees attempting to cross the Mediterranean to safety.

One of the judges, Christopher Wordsworth, William’s great great great great grandson, said that Mayumi’s poem showed a deep concern for and understanding of the world around her. “It is very, very sad, but beautifully expressed,” he said.

The competition, now in its sixth year, attracted nearly 200 entries this time. Awards were presented at Rydal Mount near Ambleside where Wordsworth lived for most of his life.

Mayumi, a pupil at Windermere School, lives at Whitehaven and comes from an international background - her father is from India and her mother from Malaysia.

English teacher Mrs Lucy Baker said: “Mayumi is only Year 7 but she is a very serious thinker and has tremendous general knowledge. She is interested in international affairs and wrote the poem after hearing her father talk about the plight of the Syrian refugees.”

The theme of Deep Waters was chosen by the Wordsworth family, and attracted a wide range of interpretations.