Life & Time launches children's art competition in local schools
Local end-of-life care charity Life & Time is delighted to announce the launch of its 2025 Children’s Art Competition, inviting primary and post-primary pupils across South Down to showcase their creativity. The winning entries will be proudly featured in the Life & Time 2026 Calendar.
The competition encourages children to explore important ideas around memory, care, and compassion. Pupils are invited to create a drawing based on one of three scenarios:
- Scenario 1 – Favourite Memory / Grief
- Children are invited to draw a favourite memory of someone who has died — this could be a grandparent, friend, or neighbour — by illustrating an activity they did together, such as baking, fishing, farming, or fixing things. They may also choose to draw a favourite place that reminds them of that person. For pupils who have not experienced the loss of a loved one, they can instead draw a pet or select one of the other scenarios.
- Scenario 2 – Care in Your Community
- Care can be found everywhere — in the kindness of a friend, the warmth of family, the love of a pet, or in the beauty of the world around us. Life & Time’s team of nurses and doctors also provide care for people who are very ill in their own homes during the night. Children are invited to draw a picture that shows what caring looks like to them, whether that is through family, friends, pets, or professional carers in the community.
- Scenario 3 – What Palliative Care Means to You
- Palliative care is support that improves the quality of life for someone living with a serious or life-limiting illness. It may be provided by doctors and nurses, but it often also comes from family members, friends, neighbours, or even pets. Children are asked to create a drawing that reflects what they think palliative care is, or what life should be like when someone is well cared for and supported.
Life & Time recognises that topics such as grief and loss can be sensitive. Participation is entirely optional, and it is left to the discretion of teachers and parents to decide which scenario is most appropriate for children to engage with. All entries will be judged equally, regardless of theme.
Key Dates:
- Monday 13th October – Final postal deadline for entries to Life & Time
- Friday 17th October – Artwork collection from schools
- Tuesday 29th October – Judging by the Life & Time team
- Friday 21st November – Winners announced and prizes presented at Warrenpoint Golf Club (7pm, light refreshments served)
Prizes & Recognition:
- 12 winners (4 from each region) will each receive a £25 Amazon voucher
- Winning entries will feature in the Life & Time 2026 Calendar
- All entries will be celebrated through a video montage on Life & Time social media
This year’s competition prizes and calendar are generously sponsored by John MacMahon & Co – Chartered Accountants and Auditors.
Entry templates can be downloaded via the Life & Time website or accessed through the QR code on competition flyers distributed to schools. Completed artwork should be clearly labelled with the pupil’s name, age, school, and chosen scenario, and returned either by post to:
Life & Time, 16 The Square, Rostrevor, Co Down BT34 3AZ
or left at school receptions for collection.
Life & Time provides out-of-hours, end-of-life care in the community across South Down, supporting patients and families in their own homes during the night.