Poetry Competition: Survivor Stories
On 29 July, we had a memorable lecture event as we were joined by award-winning poet, broadcaster and author Michael Rosen. Michael shared how he has dealt with hardships throughout his life, including his experience with the NHS.
For the theme of Survivor Stories, Michael went into detail about his passion for writing and how this helped him cope with grief and difficult moments in his life. He explained how writing is an outlet for him to release emotions and relieve pain.
Michael spoke highly of the doctors and nurses at Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust who helped him during his hospital stay in 2020, as they dealt with COVID-19.
He also emphasised on the importance of bottom-up approaches that put the needs of people and communities in the centre of decision-making when it comes to delivering services. At the end of the discussion, Michael gave us an important reminder that we should live each day as it comes and continue to be hopeful for the future.
Poetry competition
Following this wonderful event with Michael, The Advocacy Project and Healthwatch have launched a new poetry competition under the theme of Survivor Stories. This is a chance for anyone who is an unpublished poet to creatively share their experience of living with, or alongside, any form of physical or mental health challenge.
As Michael said, creativity helps people to express themselves and handle challenging times throughout their health journeys and recovery processes.
Presenting your poem
You can write, record or film your poem (we know some people prefer to record the spoken word or film their entry instead of writing it down).
Your poem should be a maximum of 25 lines.
How to enter
Print out and fill in the entry form then send it with your poem. You can:
Email your poem to comms@advocacyproject.org.uk
Post it to: The Advocacy Project, c/o SEIDs Hub, Empire Way, Wembley HA9 0RJ
Hand it to staff who work for The Advocacy Project and they will make sure it’s entered into the competition.
The closing date is midnight, 31 August 2024.
The winning poet will receive a bundle of Michael Rosen books, as well as features on our website and social media.
Judging
The poems will be judged by Michael Rosen, broadcaster, poet and author. We will keep the names of everyone who enters anonymous until the winners are announced.
For more information
If you’d like more information on the competition, please email comms@advocacyproject.org.uk
