It was wonderful to meet lots of current, past, and future students, and their families, at St Gregory’s Open Evening on Thursday 28 September, which was also National Poetry Day!  Many of you have written poems on the theme of ‘Freedom’ (National Poetry Day’s theme this year) and some of these are now on display along the corridors of the Gateway Building (First Floor).  There is so much writing talent at St Gregory’s!

This week, students have been reading and writing poems about ‘Where I’m From’.  For inspiration, we’ve read ‘Where I’m From’ by Melanie Poonai, who was a winner in the Foyle’s Young Poets of the Year Competition in 2007 and ‘Lament for Syria’ by Amineh Abou Kerech, aged 13, who won First Prize in the Betjeman Poetry Prize this year.  You can read some of the amazing poems written by St Gregory’s students on the pinboard by the study area in the Gateway Building.

I am really enjoying meeting some of you during English lessons, as well as during Break and in my Creative Writing Club at Lunchtime on Wednesdays.  I am very impressed that a few of you have emailed me your poems and I have been able to send back some feedback.  My email address is corcoranj@st-gregorys.org.uk.  More poems welcome!  I look forward to meeting more of you soon.  You can find me on the first floor of the Gateway every Wednesday.

Josephine Corcoran Writer in Residence