A seriously busy term started with a visit to Unity Academy, Blackpool at the beginning of January and ended back at Unity just before Easter. Between those visits, I stopped off at just short of thirty schools as well as eight libraries. Visits to Bolton, Wigan, Redditch, Preston, Stockport and Stoke-on-Trent to name but a…
Another Autumn term has drawn to a close and what a cracker it’s been! I’ve visited loads of schools across the North West working with thousands of children, delivered storytelling sessions in libraries and even participated in a community project in Rochdale. I’m going to take some time out over Christmas to rest and recharge…
The sun may have been shining but I didn’t see much of it as I was busy visiting lots of schools! I had a fantastic few months working with twenty schools. From Fleetwood to Rawtenstall, Blackpool to Barnoldswick, Kirkby Lonsdale to Darwen and Barrow to Swinton – I had an absolute blast! I even managed…
The final half term of the academic year saw a flurry of visits as I rebooted my in-person visits. I had the pleasure of working with the Year 3 pupils at Unity Academy, Blackpool, creating fearsome pirate characters. An afternoon visit to St Catherine’s Academy, Bolton, was spent telling stories and answering lots of questions…
If I’m honest, I was worried that WBD 2021 might not be able to happen. Covid and repeated lockdowns had changed everything and rather than visiting schools I was busy creating virtual options to keep the book buzz alive. Well I need not have worried! Schools and youth groups adapted, evolved and completely embraced the…
National Storytelling Week 2021 evolved into a two-week storytelling extravaganza! All visits were virtual this year, because of Covid-19, but the storytelling action wasn’t affected. I spent time working with a range of ages, from Nursery to Year 8 in the UK and even overseas. Zooms with schools in Bedfordshire and Lancashire, plus an international…
After six months out of schools due to Covid-19 it was wonderful to reboot my school events with a visit to St Johns CE Primary, Blackpool. Year 4 had been studying one of my Impossible Tales and reading Eric Appleby: Zero To Hero as their class reader. During the morning, we picked apart an ‘unseen…
2020 kicked off with a busy first half-term! I visited ten primaries and two libraries across the North West, delivering storytelling sessions and writing workshops. Highlights included a first-time visit to Wigan when I shared stories at Standish library as part of National Storytelling Week – what a treat that was! Hopefully I’ll get to…
It’s been a flying start to the new academic year. I’ve visited seventeen schools, some multiple times, during the Autumn Term. There’s been a few that I’ve previously visited, as well as sharing stories and writing with pupils in schools that were new to me. I even took part in the celebrations to open a…
The academic year finished with a blur of events! I visited eleven primary and high schools to share stories and write with the pupils, delivered a guest speaker presentation at a reading conference and performed my stories at reading festivals in Blackpool and Barrow-in-Furness. Writing the books is ace, but getting out on the road…