From Pen to Paper

Led by friends, partners and supporters.

Led by ‘Friends of Kirkby Gallery and Prescot Museum’ and supported by partners including Knowsley CVS, The Big Help project, Adult Disability Services, Knowsley Community College and Knowsley Housing Trust.

Friends of Kirkby Gallery and Prescot Museum have created a free creative writing course for adults who are on low incomes and haven’t participated in a creative project before. Through reading, discussion and workshop exercises, participants are introduced to techniques that will develop storytelling and poetry writing skills, encouraging individuals to develop their own ‘voice’ via the written word. A small book of writing and poems will be produced at the end of the project.

From October 2017 to October 2018, 863 people took part in the project and as well as developing creative skills, the project addressed other issues such as social isolation, mental health and improving confidence and independence.  A total of 52 sessions were delivered covering sculpture, creative writing, painting, crafts and drawing. Three participants have subsequently signed up as volunteers at Kirkby Gallery and a further participant has enrolled at university for a course delivered by Museum Development North West.  In addition, 15 participants have established their own longer-term creative writing group under the name of ‘From Pen to Paper’ and will continue to meet each month.