New Town Voices Toolkit

Pleased to share this new creative resource for young women and social workers, developed through New Town Voices, a New Town Culture project I delivered with the White House Dagenham.

Download a digital copy here.

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New Town Voices was a series of workshops for girls accessing social care services, led by poet Belinda Zhawi.

Through a range of activities, including cut~out, black~out, protest and audio poetry, participants used creative writing to reflect on personal experiences and imagine alternative futures. The workshops generated a set of tools for young people, helping to mobilise their voices, words and stories for personal and collective empowerment.

Developed through these sessions, I curated Zhawi's New Town Voices Toolkit for social workers, co~authored by participants, and designed and printed by Rachel Littlewood at Rabbits Road Press. Inside, you will find examples of poems by the inspiring group of young women, as well as creative writing exercises to try together.

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^{White House Dagenham is a project of Create London, an organisation that commissions socially~engaged art in the public realm.}

^{New Town Culture is a programme by London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, reframing cultural activity as core to social care services and developing creative ways to support systemic change.}