Congratulations to author Asli Jensen and her editor Shalini Vallepur who together were crowned the winners of the 2026 Branford Boase Award for Love on Sight (Chicken House) at a ceremony in London on Wednesday 8 July.

Set up in 2000, the Branford Boase Award celebrates the year’s outstanding debut novel for young people and is unique in honouring a book’s editor as well as its author.

Love on Sight is a contemporary YA romance exploring the relationship between two young Londoners caught between cultures and coping with family expectations and responsibilities while trying to live their lives as they want. Author Asli Jensen was born and brought up in West London and the book draws on her own experience and those of the young people she got to know through her work in the youth justice system.

Commenting on her win, Jensen said: ‘Love on Sight has been living in me for a long time. I’ve always wanted to write a love story that draws on real teen experiences and dives deep into issues that linger in my heart. If I’m being honest, I wasn’t always confident that it would land with people, and I’m so grateful that it did. This book is rooted in culture and complexity, and it’s there to shine a light on communities that don’t always get to see themselves at the centre of a love story. I am truly blessed to have both myself and my editor Shalini recognised for the hard work and love we poured into this book.’

Love on Sight was chosen from a seven-strong shortlist by a panel of judges made up of educators, reviewers and authors, including last year’s Branford Boase winner Margaret McDonald, who said: ‘I was completely blown away by Love on Sight and we judges were gripped from the first page. We admire the authenticity of the voice and the language and the way the story examines dating in contemporary London through the relationship between main characters Jalaal and Sabrina, a Somali Muslim boy and English Jamaican Christian girl. The approach is insightful and nuanced, and brings so much tenderness and empathy to the novel alongside the myriad issues explored. It’s truly a worthy winner.’

As Branford Boase Award winners, Asli Jensen and Shalini Vallepur join a list that has shaped children’s literature over the last quarter century. Winning and shortlisted authors include Frances Hardinge, Meg Rosoff, Patrick Ness, Maisie Chan and Nathanael Lessore, and winning editors include David Fickling, Fiona Kennedy, Barry Cunningham, and Bella Pearson.

Commenting on this year’s award, Julia Eccleshare, award co-founder and Chair of the Judges, said: ‘Once again, the shortlist for the Branford Boase Award was extremely strong and we look forward to reading what all seven authors write next. Not for the first time a contemporary story of Britain’s multi-cultural young community has won the award, and we are delighted to highlight and celebrate these vital new stories.’

Also celebrated at the award ceremony were the winners of this year’s Henrietta Branford Writing Competition, which runs in conjunction with the Branford Boase Award. Taking inspiration from last year’s Branford Boase winner Glasgow Boys, entrants were asked to write about a place or a person they know well. Young writers responded in their hundreds with stories, poems and rap or song lyrics. Six young writers aged between 12 and 17 were chosen as the winners, with a further eight being Highly Commended. You can see all the winning entries for the Henrietta Branford Writing Competition here.