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It is sometimes said that football, when it’s played properly, at its fluid best, is like a form of physical poetry.
Well now, the National Literacy Trust and Arts Council England have launched A Poem for Your Club to try to help inspire the community to explore creative writing through their football club and boost literacy levels.
Crystal Palace – in FA Cup action against Millwall at lunchtime today – are one of five clubs across England to have a professional resident poet who will work with children, young and Eagles fans to create a collaborative poem for the club.
A Poem for Your Club, funded by The Compton Poetry Fund, will see the Palace for Life Foundation charity working with local poet, Dan Simpson.
Croydon was selected for the project, according to the Arts Council, “because of a historic lack of investment in cultural opportunities for local people, which can have a negative impact on engagement with important skills like writing and creativity”.
Poet in residence: Dan Simpson
As Crystal Palace’s poet-in-residence, Simpson will run workshops through until the summer “to unlock fans’ creative writing potential in the non-traditional environment of a stadium”.
Simpson said: “I am thrilled and proud to be Crystal Palace’s poet and workshop leader for ‘A Poem for Your Club’.
“I’ve supported Palace since my childhood and can’t wait to work with the communities the club supports – bringing their passionate voices to life through poetry and spoken word.”
This project comes as children’s enjoyment of writing has reached a crisis point, with fewer than 3-in-10 children and young people saying they enjoy writing in their free time.
Young people’s writing skills are also a cause for concern. Last year, 29% of 11-year-olds left primary school without the writing skills expected for their age. Those from disadvantaged backgrounds were worse affected.
The National Literacy Trust has spent 20 years using football as “literacy by stealth” tool to engage young people with reading and writing, including a two-decade long partnership with the Premier League.
By the end of this season, Palace will have an official poem crafted by the local community, which will reflect the spirit and cultures of the fans and can be displayed in the club to inspire others and reinforce local pride.
“I’m hoping that the words I write and those of the community soar as boldly as the Eagles!” Simpson said.
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Oh Andy Johnson’s magic,
He wears a magic hat,
And when sees the match ball,
He says I’m having that,
He scores with his left foot,
He scores with his right,
And he plays against Brighton,
He scores all f*cking night…
Neither Shakespeare nor Wordsworth could surpass that