Hooray! Our second application to Arts Council England was successful, and Poetry on Loan is in business again for the next two years.
We have hit the ground running, and already have seven events definitely booked. These include:
- a sonnet-writing workshop in the Black Country Museum, on 14th May;
- poetry on demand in Lightwoods Park, Smethwick, on 21st May;
- a local history / reminiscence workshop in Acocks Green library, Birmingham, one day in May.
We want to express our deep thanks to an anonymous donor, who gave us enough to run five events while we were waiting to hear about our funding. These included Liz Berry in Stirchfield library, Poetry on Demand (with Jonny Fluffypunk and Steve Pottinger) in Coventry and Telford, Jonny's End of the pier show in Worcester, and a weekend event in Solihull. This was an astonishing and very welcome gift, and we like to think that it shows how much Poetry on Loan is valued.
And there is news. I have been Poetry on Loan's Co-ordinator for fourteen years now, and I feel it's time to hand over to someone else. I still love the job, and I'm still having new ideas for PoL, but time is running away and there are other things I want to do. If you would like to apply, full details are here. It's a complex role with lots of different aspects, but very rewarding; I'll miss it terribly.