Five English football teams commission official poems to encourage youth literacy
A Poem for your Club is a new initiative from the National Literacy Trust (NLT), a charity that campaigns for higher literacy across the UK, commissioned by Arts Council England and funded by The Compton Poetry Fund.
Blackburn Rovers, Stoke City, Crystal Palace, Luton Town and Portsmouth football clubs will each receive their own poet-in-residence who will run writing workshops and other activities to 'unlock fans' creative writing potential in the non-traditional environment of a stadium'.
As part of this scheme, the poets will also create an official poem for each of the clubs through collaboration with the local community 'which will reflect the spirit and cultures' of the club and its fans 'to inspire others and reinforce local pride'.
The scheme is just the latest in a set of initiatives run by the NLT over the past two decades to use football as a 'literacy by stealth' tool to engage young people in reading and writing.
Local heroes
Poets chosen for the clubs so far are all locally connected to the clubs. Alan Barrett will work with Stoke City, Dan Simpson for Crystal Palace, Naz Knight for Luton Town, and David Swann for Blackburn Rovers.
Portsmouth is in the final stages of selecting its resident poet for the scheme.
The poets will also work with local charities and schools to engage the community in both the club and literature. For example, Barrett will work with Stoke Social, Stoke Memories, Potters Dementia Wellbeing group as well as local primary schools and other youth groups as part of his residence with Stoke City.
A Poem for your Club was inspired by the poem Jamie Thrasivoulou was commissioned to write in 2018 for Derby County Football Club. Thrasivoulou first performed 'We Are Derby' at a game between the club and local rivals Nottingham Forest in front of more than 31,000 people.
After the success of Thrasivoulou's poem, Everton commissioned poet Paul Cookson to create a club poem that was used to launch the club's 2018-2019 season ticket campaign.
Finding new ways to engage young people with reading and writing is high on the agenda for NLT. This week they released their latest national survey results which showed youth reading at its lowest levels since 2019.
For the first time since the NLT started surveying listening habits, more children said they preferred listening to books over reading them. As a result, the NLT is also campaigning for audiobooks to be included more in the national curriculum to encourage reading.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Euronews
01-05-2025
- Euronews
Gruffalo set to return next year with first book in more than 20 years
ADVERTISEMENT He's hairy. He's got sharp teeth. He's been outsmarted by a mouse. He's back. Yes, family favourite Gruffalo is returning to bookshelves next year in a brand new adventure – the monster's first in more than two decades. Publisher Macmillan Children's Books confirmed the news today, promising a fresh tale from British writer Julia Donaldson, following 1999's 'The Gruffalo' and 2004's 'The Gruffalo's Child'. The first two books – among the most popular children's titles in the world – are available in 113 languages and dialects, and have sold a combined 18.2 million copies worldwide. The original Gruffalo book has been adapted into plays and an Academy Award-nominated animated film – which is well worth seeking out. ETA for the new, as-yet-untitled story? September 2026. 'The Gruffalo' and 'The Gruffalo's Child' Axel Scheffler - Macmillan Children's Books Donaldson said she was inspired to write the third Gruffalo story after seeing how the National Literacy Trust (NLT) charity had used the previous tales in their work encouraging young children to read. "I actually had the basic idea for the story a long time ago, but couldn't think how to develop it," Donaldson said while announcing the forthcoming book. "It was only when the NLT used the first two books as part of their Early Words Matter programme that I was spurred on to get my idea out of the cupboard and see once and for all if I could turn it into a really satisfying story. To my surprise, I managed to do just that.' 'I was, of course, delighted when Axel came on board, and am even more so now that I've seen the brilliant sketches he's already done for the new book,' added Donaldson. Indeed, German illustrator Axel Scheffler is also back – which is even better news for fans of Gruffalo. Scheffler said: 'Never say never – a lesson learned for me who, whenever asked denied the possibility of another visit to the deep dark wood. Till one day out of the blue there came a wonderfully clever and inspired new text by Julia. How does she do this? Could I decline? Of course not!' Macmillan will be partnering with NLT and other charitable organisations across the globe for the publication of the new book, with plans to drive an international children's reading and storytelling campaign. Jonathan Douglas, NLT's chief executive, said: 'Reading and sharing stories is critical for shaping a child's early speech and language development and we can't think of a better way to support families in igniting their children's love of stories and reading than with the magic and influence of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler's The Gruffalo." ADVERTISEMENT The third Gruffalo book will hit shelves in September 2026.
Euronews
06-03-2025
- Euronews
Read all about it! UK and Ireland celebrate World Book Day
The UK and Ireland are celebrating World Book Day. Held on the first Thursday of March, the event is the British Isles' localised version of the global UNESCO-organized celebration. ADVERTISEMENT Across the UK and Ireland, children are today being encouraged to participate in activities that celebrate reading and writing through activities in schools, libraries and youth organisations. One of the most popular activities included in World Book Day is the sale of £1/€1.50 books. Retailers across the nations carry a stock of specially selected children's books sold for the low price to tempt youngsters to try out new material. Every child in the region is entitled to a £1/€1.50 token that they can use to buy the books at selected retailers and pop-up shops at schools. Books in the offer this year include ones featuring Paddington, Pokémon, and Bluey. There are also two books in Gaelic and Welsh, respectively. For many parents in the UK and Ireland, World Book Day can be a dreaded event, however, as children are often asked to dress up as their favourite book characters for school. Annually the British press is awash with stories on putting together last-minute outfits to fit their children's whims. Fortunately, the official World Book Day website provides their own 'low-cost dressing up pack' for parents looking for inspiration. Reading between the lines Schools will also put on programmes to celebrate reading, as figures from the National Literacy Trust (NLT) show the activity has dropped in popularity in recent years. Annual NLT research found the lowest number of children reading for pleasure in the UK last year since 2019. For the first time since the NLT started surveying listening habits, more children said they preferred listening to books (42.3%) over reading them (34.6%). On the results, the NLT has said that 'children and young people's levels of reading and writing enjoyment are in crisis, with quite dramatic decreases in levels of both over the last year alone.' In response, the charity is campaigning for more use of audiobooks in the national curriculum. In 2019, World Book Day commissioned the NLT to conduct research into the impact of the event. While many children spoke positively of access to books, some didn't have access to libraries and needed more financial support to read. Nearly 3 in 10 (28%) children aged 8 to 11 receiving free school meals said the book they 'bought' with their World Book Day token had been the first book of their own. Schools across the UK and Ireland are participating Canva Of the children surveyed, they all appreciated the book token scheme. One participant said: "They are a very good idea because if there's this book that you want, but you can't afford it or your parents just won't let you get it unless it's for free, then you can get this token and say, well, now I can get any book for free, so I might as well get one.' Two days, one mission World Book Day is a UNESCO-organised event that has been run on 23 April since 1995. Every year a different city is selected as the World Book Day Capital City. Last year, Strasbourg in north-eastern France was chosen, while Brazil's Rio de Janeiro has the honour in 2025. The UK and Ireland's World Book Day is a separate event set up in the UK to work alongside the global UNESCO event. First launched in 1998 by then-UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, the first Thursday of March was picked so the programme didn't clash with Easter school holidays in the UK. Alongside World Book Day, the UK government is also partnering with other schemes to promote reading. These include Start for Life which is encouraging 'families to chat, play and read with their child from birth' as well as a UK-Ukraine school partnerships programme, where 'pupils will explore reading as a tool to build literacy skills, cross-cultural understanding, expand horizons, and boost confidence and wellbeing.'
Euronews
06-03-2025
- Euronews
Read all about it: UK and Ireland celebrate World Book Day
Across the UK and Ireland, children are today being encouraged to participate in activities that celebrate reading and writing through activities in schools, libraries and youth organisations. One of the most popular activities included in World Book Day is the sale of £1/€1.50 books. Retailers across the nations carry a stock of specially selected children's books sold for the low price to tempt youngsters to try out new material. Every child in the region is entitled to a £1/€1.50 token that they can use to buy the books at selected retailers and pop-up shops at schools. Books in the offer this year include ones featuring Paddington, Pokémon, and Bluey. There are also two books in Gaelic and Welsh, respectively. For many parents in the UK and Ireland, World Book Day can be a dreaded event, however, as children are often asked to dress up as their favourite book characters for school. Annually the British press is awash with stories on putting together last-minute outfits to fit their children's whims. Fortunately, the official World Book Day website provides their own 'low-cost dressing up pack' for parents looking for inspiration. Reading between the lines Schools will also put on programmes to celebrate reading, as figures from the National Literacy Trust (NLT) show the activity has dropped in popularity in recent years. Annual NLT research found the lowest number of children reading for pleasure in the UK last year since 2019. For the first time since the NLT started surveying listening habits, more children said they preferred listening to books (42.3%) over reading them (34.6%). On the results, the NLT has said that 'children and young people's levels of reading and writing enjoyment are in crisis, with quite dramatic decreases in levels of both over the last year alone.' In response, the charity is campaigning for more use of audiobooks in the national curriculum. In 2019, World Book Day commissioned the NLT to conduct research into the impact of the event. While many children spoke positively of access to books, some didn't have access to libraries and needed more financial support to read. Nearly 3 in 10 (28%) children aged 8 to 11 receiving free school meals said the book they 'bought' with their World Book Day token had been the first book of their own. Of the children surveyed, they all appreciated the book token scheme. One participant said: "They are a very good idea because if there's this book that you want, but you can't afford it or your parents just won't let you get it unless it's for free, then you can get this token and say, well, now I can get any book for free, so I might as well get one.' Two days, one mission World Book Day is a UNESCO-organised event that has been run on 23 April since 1995. Every year a different city is selected as the World Book Day Capital City. Last year, Strasbourg in north-eastern France was chosen, while Brazil's Rio de Janeiro has the honour in 2025. The UK and Ireland's World Book Day is a separate event set up in the UK to work alongside the global UNESCO event. First launched in 1998 by then-UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, the first Thursday of March was picked so the programme didn't clash with Easter school holidays in the UK. Alongside World Book Day, the UK government is also partnering with other schemes to promote reading. These include Start for Life which is encouraging 'families to chat, play and read with their child from birth' as well as a UK-Ukraine school partnerships programme, where 'pupils will explore reading as a tool to build literacy skills, cross-cultural understanding, expand horizons, and boost confidence and wellbeing.'
