Lord Provost and Poet Laureate encourage pupils to pen poems

Glasgow's Lord Provost teamed up with the city's Poet Laureate to inspire children to embrace poetry at Anderston Primary School this morning Thursday October 12.

Lord Provost Eva Bolander joined Glasgow's Poet Laureate Jim Carruth at the school to launch the city's annual poetry competition - open to all P7 pupils across the city.

The Lord Provost's Poetry Prize for Schools is encouraging children to submit a poem on the theme: 'Looking Forward - Looking Back'

The Lord Provost said: "Poetry is such a personal creative process. I'm really looking forward to reading the submissions. Children have such honesty and few inhibitions and it shines through in their words.

"I'm confident they'll astonish, surprise and move the judging panel in equal measure, as well as raise a few laughs."

Jim Carruth's latest work Black Cart draws on his upbringing in the farmlands of Renfrewshire. Almost eighteen years in the making it's a collection devoted to rural Scotland.

Bringing the daily grind, its joys and harsh realities to life. As well as documenting a lost generation of family, friends, farmers and farms.

Jim said: "I believe we are all born poets with a wonderful appreciation of rhythm and rhyme from an early age. That is when I first fell in love with poetry and that love has grown as an adult. I am really looking forward to reading poems from all the young voices across this great city."