Women's - formerly Orange - Prize for Fiction to be privately funded in 2013

Individual donors including Cherie Blair, Martha Lane Fox and Joanna Trollope will fund the prize, which is still in negotiations for a headline sponsor to replace Orange

Between 1996 and 2012, the award was sponsored by Orange, and known as the Orange Prize for Fiction.

Kate Mosse, chair of what is now known as the Women's Prize for Fiction, said: 'We were overwhelmed with interest from potential headline sponsors. However, it became clear sponsorship budgets for next year were already committed, so we took the decision to privately fund the Prize for 2013 while we finalized our arrangements for 2014 and beyond. We are delighted that such a wide range of people are supporting this exceptional year and thank them for their support.'

The £30,000 prize, for novels by women published between 1 April 2012 and 31 March 2013,  will be awarded on 5 June 2013. The judging panel has been announced, and will consist of Miranda Richardson, Razia Iqbal, Rachel Johnson, JoJo Moyes and Natasha Walter.