With current government advice in mind, First Story’s Chief Executive, Antonia Byatt, responds to the uncertainty surrounding the outbreak of COVID-19.
First Story’s Blog
Regional Writing Stars – Autumn term
We ran a new competition this year – Regional Writing Stars – created to highlight and celebrate regional voices and stories.
A good education for all: First Story and the Ofsted inspection framework
Ofsted recently published its Annual Report for 2018/19, the year it introduced its new education inspection framework and sparked fresh debate about what works best to tackle disadvantage. Our Chief Executive shares her thoughts.
Watch: Six Word Story 2019 finalists showcase
The 12 shortlisted stories in this year’s Six Word Story competition, performed by Juno Dawson, Nikesh Shukla, Caroline Bird, Priya O’Shea, Salena Godden, Joe Dunthorne, Bridget Minamore, Tom Holland, Tracy Chevalier, Damian Barr, Katie Thistleton, and Max Porter.
How our writers and teachers support each other
We’re committed to providing regular forums for our writers and teachers to share knowledge, skills and practical experience. Programme Manager for the North, Andy Hill, asked recent participants what they get most from the sessions.
We’ve created an LGBT+ training resource
To mark LGBT+ History Month, Writer-in-Residence Caleb Parkin put together a training resource giving practitioners the tools to deliver celebratory and inclusive writing workshops.
YWF19 Highlights
YWF19 in partnership with the University of Cambridge was attended by over 330 young writers and this year featured headline speaker Juno Dawson.
First Story alumna featured in Rathbones Review
Henna Ravjibhai talks First Story, working with Joe Dunthorne, and writing on the bus to college.
BBC Young Writers’ Award 2020 Launches
To celebrate the launch of the 2020 BBC Young Writers’ Award, we caught up with last year’s winner, Georgie Woodhead, to get some insider info on what it takes to win the competition.
BBC Radio 1 Life Hacks with Chloe Holland
In December 2019, First Story alumna Chloe Holland was invited to BBC Broadcasting House in London for an interview with Katie Thistleton on Radio 1’s Life Hacks show – and she smashed it! Listen to her podcast here.
Supporter reception at Hachette UK
On 18th November 2019, publishers Hachette UK generously hosted a reception for First Story supporters at their London HQ, Carmelite House.
On being a Writer-in-Residence
Last month, publishers Hachette UK generously hosted a reception for First Story supporters, at which Writer-in-Residence Rachel Seiffert told us what it’s like to have “the best job in the world”.
#12Stories Campaign
Celebrate the power of storytelling while raising some much-needed funds to support creative writing by young people. We’re trying to raise £1,000 this festive season, to help fund our two national competitions.
Six Word Story 2019 shortlist and winner announced
Our annual Six Word Story competition is open to all First Story participating schools. Entry closed in late November. From a shortlist of 12 excellent stories, guest judge Juno Dawson picked this year’s winner.
Our impact in 2018-19
Highlights from our recently published report on our activities and impact during the 2018-19 academic year.
