A DERBY schoolboy who used his own experiences to write a poem about racism was one of dozens honoured in this year's citywide Young Citizen's Awards.

Courtney Grant-Davidson not only won the regional Show Racism the Red Card competition but his entry went on to be a runner-up nationally.

The 14-year-old Merrill College pupil was inspired to write the poem "Let's Get the Word Out There" after attending an event at Derby County's Pride Park.

He said: "I thought of writing a poem after I went to Pride Park and just wrote it down.

"A lot of the poem is based on my own bad experiences of when I have encountered racism in society when I was younger.

"I don't really want to talk about what happened but it wasn't a good time for me."

Courtney's prize was a trip to Aston Villa and also 15 Derby County shirts for his school team to wear. He said: "I had a brilliant day at Villa Park and it was a great experience to meet Ashley Young."

Teacher Scott Eley said Courtney had surprised everyone by writing a poem on the issue of racism.

He said: "Courtney attended a Show Racism the Red Card event at Derby County's Pride Park earlier this year.

"The experience inspired him to write a poem, something he has not done before.

"He also decided to make it so that it wasn't just about football, although he plays the sport himself."

A celebration evening was held at the Assembly Rooms to honour Courtney and other winners of the Young Citizen's Awards.

They included Chellaston Juniors' school council, the only school in Derby this year where the school council reached the gold award standard.

City council education officer Graham Falgate said: "We can be rightly proud in Derby that there is an active school council in every school."

Also present at the ceremony were the winners of the Young Citizen's Passport competition.

In October, the passports were sent to schools for distribution to year-11 pupils. The scheme aims to help young people be more effective citizens through an understanding of the law and society.

Schools were invited to submit entries for a competition which included a tiebreaker requiring the student to reflect on the attributes of being a good citizen in Derby today.

The prize, won by six pupils, was a visit to London in March and included a guided tour of the Houses of Parliament, attendance at Prime Minister's Question Time and a question-and-answer session with Bob Laxton, MP for Derby North.

Mr Laxton said: "I have been showing young people around Westminster for many years now and it is a very rewarding experience and shows how much young people are interested in politics."