Roehampton Poet Returns Home to Hold Workshops

Former children's laureate Joseph Coelho spoke to over 1,000 school children

Joseph Coelho was back at his old school

October 29, 2024

A former pupil of Elliot and Brandlehow Primary Schools has returned home to give a series of writing workshops this month.

Joseph Coelho, the award-winning author and poet – who was the Waterstones Children’s Laureate from 2022-2024, used to live in the Alton Estate in Roehampton.

“Seeing greater representation within the writing world is hugely important to me,” explains Joseph.

“I didn’t see a huge number of people like me, from families like my own in the books, or indeed in film or TV as I was growing up.

“I feel very passionate now about including all sorts of people and families and backgrounds within my own work, within my own poems and stories, so that every child gets the opportunity to see themselves reflected.”

He returned to both his old schools on 11 October holding a workshop for Year 7 students at the Ark Putney Academy (as Elliot School is now known).

With around 50 books published in multiple languages across the world, Joseph’s work ranges from the Luna Loves series for young readers, to his poetry anthologies and stories for older readers including The Girl Who Became a Tree. It has led to meetings with King Charles and Queen Camilla, as well as being awarded an OBE in this year’s King’s Birthday Honours.

Winner of this year’s Yoto Carnegie Medal for his young adult book The Boy Lost in the Maze, Joseph puts much of his success down to having access to books and literature from a young age.

“As a child growing up in Roehampton, it was hugely important that I had access to books and writing,” he acknowledges.

“I was very lucky that my mum would take my little sister and me to the local library, Roehampton Library, which is still there, and we’d go and borrow lots of books.

“That opened up the world of books and reading and writing and literature in general to me. All these memories start to filter their way back into my stories and poems.

“For the young people to be able to recognise those places is not only just a lovely experience but also very powerful for those young people to see their home towns represented.”

Speaking to the children about his own experiences growing up in a single parent family, Joseph shared tips for the youngsters to express their ideas and thoughts.

“The advice I would give to young people who want to share their voice through the written word is to carry a notebook wherever you go, or even just a couple of sheets of paper that are folded down the middle,” advised Joseph, who worked at the former West Hill Library when he was younger.

“The more you record your brilliant ideas, the less chance you have of ever getting writer’s block or ever running out of ideas to write about.”

Now living in Scotland, Joseph supported Wandsworth’s bid to become London Borough of Culture 2025.