Between 1965 and 2010, the John Whiting Award (from 2007 renamed the Peter Wolff Trust Supports the John Whiting Award) was awarded annually to a British or Commonwealth playwright who, in the opinion of a consortium of UK theatres, showed a new and distinctive development in dramatic writing with particular relevance to contemporary society. The award was established in 1965 to commemorate John Whiting and his distinctive contribution to post-war British theatre. Until 2006, the selection was made by the drama panel of Arts Council England, and the play did not need to have been staged, which allowed plays produced on radio to be considered.

From 2007, only plays which had been performed in the subsidised sector were eligible. The award was initially worth £1000, but grew to £6000 per year. From 2007, the award was supplied by the Peter Wolff Theatre Trust and was administered by a consortium of UK theatres which specialise in new writing.

The theatres involved were:

• Birmingham Repertory Theatre
• Bush Theatre, London
• Cleanbreak, London
• Hampstead Theatre, London
• Liverpool Everyman
• Liverpool Playhouse
• Nottingham Playhouse
• Nuffield Theatre, Southampton
• Paines Plough, London (touring)
• Royal Court Theatre, London
• Sgript Cymru, Cardiff
• Soho Theatre, London
• Tamasha Theatre Company, London
• Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh