On the first day of Advent, all Sixth Form English students attended a poetry conference run by the English and Media Centre (EMC) at Friends’ House, Euston. This provided a rare and brilliant opportunity to hear about our set poems from the poets themselves.

Speakers included the poets Patience Agbabi, Vicki Feaver, and Ian Duhig. Hearing them speak gave us a valuable insight into their intentions for their work. As well as this, we heard from the editor of EMC magazine, who gave us some really helpful exam guidance. We also heard from other poets who shared their work and advised us on how to approach comparing poems in the exam.

Overall, the day gave us all a deeper understanding of poetry as both readers and writers. We came away feeling much more confident in how to approach this aspect of our A-level course. Many thanks to Ms Munroe and Ms Rivers for taking us to this excellent event.   

Written by Ivy, Amy and Katherine, Year 12