Write On! in Schools

Write On! In Schools places inspiring, professional writers into schools to help young people discover and develop a passion for creative writing.

Our Write On! schemes take various forms, from intensive days (Original Writing Days) to longer term residencies. Our most popular Write On! scheme works with groups of up to 30 children or young people over five half-day sessions, and is described below:

What we offer

• Writers work with a group of children or young people over five half-day creative writing sessions which are tailored to meet your needs.
• Writers run in-school creative writing sessions/inset sessions for school staff and creative writing sessions for parents/carers.
• Children can participate in our Write On! Online Creative Writing Communities.
  
• All participating children receive a Write On! Certificate and can be nominated for our annual Write On! Awards.

Your school will be matched to a writer at a planning meeting, followed by a site visit by the writer.

What teachers say

Over the past ten years we have worked with hundreds of schools throughout the West Midlands (see this list for some of them) and the feedback from them has been overwhelmingly positive. Here are a few responses:-

“The children showed a huge level of enthusiasm and a lot of respect towards the writer. They became excellent talkers of their own writing and listened intently to others. What an excellent project! I have enjoyed every moment and loved seeing the children shine. They have all developed into really creative writers full of enthusiasm.” RegentsPark Community Primary School, Birmingham

“The children were delighted with the opportunity they had to work with a professional writer. The range of games and activities inspired all the children. The writer had many practical approaches to inspire both teachers and pupils. All of us had opportunities to think, reflect and allow ideas to grow”. St Anne’s RC Junior and Infants School, Birmingham

“The children loved Peter [Peter Wynne-Wilson, the writer]. We created an online blog which enabled Peter to communicate with us when he wasn’t in school. He raised the profile of writing, especially for boys. The parents were very impressed with Peter and the work we had done with him”. Parkfield Primary School, Wolverhampton

“This project gave me (as the class teacher) ideas for making writing more enjoyable and interactive and also prompted other staff to be more creative, e.g. using outdoor space as a classroom. The parents who came to the workshop enjoyed the experience. It was a really worthwhile experience for the children and me – thank you!” Perry Common Junior and Infant School, Birmingham

We charge fees dependent on the amount of time writers spend in school (our adminstration costs are covered by support from Arts Council England and other funders). To find out how your school can get involved please phone Jonathan Davidson on 0121 246 2770 or use our contact form.  

Our writers

We work with a distinguished list of writers who will work with you to provide the most appropriate creative writing activities for your school. Our writers are experienced at working in schools and with children and young people. Here are just a three…

Helen Cross… 
Helen Cross is an award winning writer.  Her first novel, My Summer of Love, was published in 2001 and was the winner of a Betty Trask Award in 2002. It was made into a feature film directed by Paweł Pawlikowski. She also wrote The Secrets She Keeps, published in 2005. Her third and latest novel, Spilt Milk, Black Coffee, was published in 2009. She is an experienced teacher of creative writing, both in the UK and abroad. Although her work as a writer is mainly for adults she is an accomplished leader of creative writing workshops for children and young people.

David Calcutt…
David Calcutt is a novelist, playwright and theatre director. His novels for young people are Crowboy, Shadow Bringer and Map of Marvels, all published by Oxford University Press. He has also written many plays and adaptations for BBC Radio Four. His first plays were written for youth theatres, and several of the plays for young people are published for use in schools and colleges.

Emma Purshouse…
Emma Purshouse is a performance poet, writer and stand-up comedienne. Her poetry is published in book and CD by Offa’s Press. She is a winner of poetry slams and has performed at literature festivals widely, including at Cheltenham Festival of Literature, Ledbury Poetry Festival and Warwick Words. She was recently commissioned by Arts Council England to produce a one hour performance poetry show, The Professor Vyle Show.