survivorspoetry.com - Survivors' History and Activities

Description of the Activities of Survivors’ Poetry

Introduction Survivors’ Poetry is a London-based National arts charity (Reg. No. 1040177 that works to support, promote and publish the poetry of people who have been through, or are currently in, the UK’s mental health system. We work with ‘survivors’ of psychiatric illness, drug addiction, sexual abuse, and mood-altering medication. Many of our clients have experienced the dark end of life in psychiatric hospitals, prisons, rehabilitation units, or counselling centres; all are trying hard to get their lives back together again. Survivors’ Poetry was founded in 1991 by four poets who had themselves had first-hand experience of the mental health system. Even today many of our staff, volunteer helpers, advisors and trustees come from a survivor background. This fact puts the organisation in a unique position to act on its vision of a society in which survivors can work towards emotional and mental stability through the discipline and truth to self that is a prerequisite for the imaginative expression in language of traumatic experiences. Survivors’ Poetry actively supports and promotes the sheer linguistic talent that many survivors bring to their insight into their own condition and that of others. Our office in London is the heart of a network of national poetry workshops, performances, and publishing and recording ventures. It is to us that survivors from anywhere in the UK can turn for advice and information. We help connect thirty affiliated groups throughout the UK; publish a quarterly magazine, Poetry Express; organise events and workshops; introduce survivor poets to many of the top literary festivals in the UK, where they have become an established feature; help with the publishing of pamphlets and books; maintain and update a website; liaise with mental health trusts, hospitals and rehabilitation centres, for which we help organise practical poetry workshops; host a regular spot on radio; and run a mentoring scheme that pairs talented novice survivor poets with those who have become established. We feel that the creative discipline the writing and performance of poetry demands of survivors is an invaluable component in their recovering a sense of self (and the world) from the often chaotic, desperate and fragmentary lives they have suffered in the past. Many survivors find an abiding fascination and sense of self-worth in their power to channel and structure energies that had previously been out of, and beyond, their control. We believe that survivors have a particular hitherto unexplored artistic perception and contribution to offer society.

Definition A ‘survivor’ may be a person with a current or past experience of psychiatric hospitals, a recipient of ECT tranquillisers or other medication, a user of counselling services, survivors of addiction, a survivor of sexual abuse, racial abuse, imprisonment, child abuse and any other person who has empathy with the experience of survivors. Our aim is to provide structures of self-empowerment for all those involved by: Offering poetry workshops and performance guidance. Organising performance and other events where new survivor poets, performers, musicians, visual artists, are promoted alongside ‘established’ performers. Developing quality in content and delivery of survivor poetry. Offering committee members and volunteers skills training appropriate to running the organisation. Seeking to encourage the formation of similar groups throughout the UK and eventually in other countries, by establishing a consultation process and exchange of skills and personnel. Monitoring the balance between the organisation’s business and resourcing requirements while maintaining sensitivity towards the personal and professional needs of those involve in a supportive way. Continuing to achieve recognition within artistic circles to help dispel fear and prejudice in society.

Poetry Express Quarterly Newsletter Poetry Express, SP’s quarterly newsletter, originally had a mailing list of 3,000. It now appears electronically and is downloaded over 16,000 times a year – not simply the current but archival copies. It features poets, mental health issues, public debate, interviews, analyses, reviews and listings. Poetry Express boasts a full-colour and artwork, is unique in its field, attracting the University of Buffalo NY, and South Indian Central Public Library in Karakonan, to archive copies of Poetry Express. Our e-zene is thus provisioned in real space across the world.

Publications *We Have Come Through* and Ten Russian Poets In 2003, both We Have Come Through and Ten Russian Poets were launched, to widespread acclaim. The first, edited by Peter Forbes, was published in 2003 by Bloodaxe. The latter (Anvil) is a volume of translations (one poet per decade) edited by Richard McKane. *Dino Campana* and Orphans of Albion A translation by the distinguished Cristina Viti, of the great early 20^th century Italian survivor poet (1885-1932); published 2006. The innovative *Orphans of Albion* traces descent from the 1960s underground. Famous poets juxtapose with remarkable new voices; published 2008. *Esmée Fairbairn Mentored Pamphlets* With the Esmée Fairbairn Trust, SP inaugurated an innovative mentor/mentee scheme. This pairs established poets with promising new talents. Since 2006,30 booklets have been or are scheduled for publication.

Website Our new website receives over 4000 visitors a month and in its current incarnation has had over 2 millions hits. It details both London and National SP events, items of interest from past issues of Poetry Express and we hope in the future to have available videos of SP performances. It also hosts a closely moderated chatforum for users, as well as monitored information of how to contact local user groups with a fully interactive map. The British Library has just archived our website. The University of Buffalo, New York, downloads Poetry Express and much else from our website.

Outreach Festivals and Partnerships Survivors’ Poetry participates at a wide range of Literary Festivals: the Swindon Festival of Literature, Ways with Words at Dartington, Hebden Bridge, Stoke, Ledbury, Ilkley, Lockerbie, Poole, Bristol, and the Du Maurier Cornwall Festival. SP has appeared on Resonance fm, and boasts filmed events. SP’s Outreach Programme embraces not only diversity, but groups like women in prison, and the gay and lesbian London Irish community. This augments involvement with organisations providing advocacy for Black and Asian survivors, and Southwark MIND. Regular support visits to Survivor groups are strongly featured. An SP outreach initiative which uses Meditation, Reiki and Creative Writing as a single-unit therapy with recovering addicts in a structured residential programme has proved highly successful. Click here for more information. London Events and Workshops The first annual SP Event, at RADA, was held on February 22^nd, 2006. Launches of the Mentored pamphlets (see above) have also been regularly taking place at the Poetry Café, 22 Betterton Street, Covent Garden since 2006. Survivors' Poetry runs a regular open mic night on the 2nd Thursday of each month except August. See Events page for further information The Poetry Cafe 22 Betterton St. Covent Garden London WC2H 9BX Tel: 020 7420 9887 View map of WC2H 9BX on Multimap.com Bird's Eye view of WC2H 9BX Get directions to or from WC2H 9BX

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