Metal And Estuary Festival in partnership with the Southbank Centre
We’re thrilled to announce that Metal and Estuary Festival are partnering with the Southbank Centre on two major national projects. These initiatives: New Poets Collective and Poets in Every Port are at the heart of the Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary celebrations in 2026.
Calling all poets from South Essex and North Kent! We would like to invite local poets who are currently unpublished to apply below.
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New Poets Collective: 75th Anniversary Edition (2025-2027)
To mark their 75th anniversary, Southbank Centre is launching a special edition of their national programme for emerging poets: the New Poets Collective. It’s all happening in conjunction with Poet in Every Port, an incredible initiative from the National Poetry Library that will take a mobile poetry library on tour to ten coastal locations across the UK.
Starting in October 2025, this new collective will be mentored by Vanessa Kisuule and Will Harris. They’ll guide poets in developing their confidence and honing their writing, performance, and facilitation skills through intensive writing retreats and both virtual and in-person workshops. Poets will also have fantastic opportunities to perform at the Southbank Centre and in their home regions with their Poet in Every Port partners.
We’re partnering with organisations and venues across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland to recruit poets or spoken word artists from each of the ten specific locations. Each partner location will host the mobile poetry library at an event or as part of a festival, with local New Poets Collective members helping to curate, contribute to, and get involved. This dynamic combination of projects will create a significant local and national moment to champion and celebrate poetry.
Apply Now!
The Southbank Centre is looking for a diverse cohort of poets, reflecting a breadth of voice, languages, style, experience, and approach.
To find out more and to access the online application form, please visit the Southbank Centre website here. The deadline for applications is Monday, August 18th, at 12 noon.
For more details, you can also email the Southbank Centre team directly at sophie.ransby@southbankcentre.co.uk or check the FAQs and Application Form Questions on the website link provided.
