The Can in Can’t Anthology
We’re delighted to have been a part of the wonderful project – The Can in Can’t, a new anthology of writing by young people from the Sheffield Children in Care Council and the Care Leavers’ Union.
NEWSFLASH: We’re so proud that the book has been highly commended in the #cypnowawards on 4th March 2021 for its work challenging stigma around experience of care. Well done all the young writers who were involved and wrote wonderful, brave poems and stories.
Facilitators for the project have been: Nik Perring (as part of his Sheffield Year of Reading writer residency), Dominic Heslop (writer & rapper, via Sheffield Music Hub), and poet Vicky Morris (in conjunction with Hive and the Youth Word Up).
Much of the project took place over lockdown and feedback tells us, it has been a safe and creative space and a real lifeline for all involved (including the facilitating writers!) Many of the young people wouldn’t have seen themselves as writers before, but that’s all changed!
Topics covered include dreams, ambitions, experiences of being in care, hopes for the future, odes to loved ones, and many imaginative and inventive explorations of the world and us in it.
1000 copies of the book will be distributed to all young people in care in the Sheffield region.
The Can in Can’t was first published in October 2020 by Sheffield Children in Care Council (SCICC) and Care Leavers Union in partnership with Sheffield Year of Reading (Sheffield Libraries), Sheffield Virtual School for CLA, Hive South Yorkshire, Sheffield Music Hub, and Off the Shelf Festival of Words (the Youth word Up – you can listen to this year’s podcast here where you’ll find some of the poems from the book)
A big thank you to: Clare Holdsworth – Coordinator Sheffield Children in Care Council, Carly Speechley – Director of Children’s Services, Helen Fidler from Sheffield Virtual School, Anne-Marie Banks and Sheffield Fostering, Tanya Ward, Angela Taylor, Ruth Humphreys – Children’s Involvement Team, Dominic Heslop and Sheffield Music Hub, Isobel Fisher – Service Manager Children’s Looked After Service, the team at Off the Sheffield Festival of Words, Nik Perring and Vicky Morris at Hive South Yorkshire.
