During Autumn 2025 we delivered a mixture of one and two day workshops to children in years 2, 3, 4 and 5 (6 to 9 years old) at Parish Church Primary School in Gainsborough and Ermine Primary Academy in Lincoln.

It was our first time working with Gainsborough Old Hall and Lincoln Bishop University with both venues hosting workshops and student volunteers joining us from the University

A total of 194 children took part in the workshops.

Gainsborough

Three classes (one each of years 3 and 4 and one mixed class of the same age) attended at Gainsborough Old Hall. The Hall has an education room which is of the same construction as the hall, so period and atmospheric.

Some comments from the children:

• “It gets your brain to think of ideas”
• “I think the workshop is amazing”
• “I think me story was really good”
• “You get to be fun and creative”
• “I liked that we could make our own books”
• “I loved seeing all my friends laughing” (this child wrote a comedy).

All the children were thrilled to receive a copy of their classes’ book and we also provided a few extra for the teachers to use in school.

The teachers completed an evaluation form and we were particularly interested in understanding what they would take away from the workshops to use in class and what they would do with the extra books:

For use in class:

• “Totally inventing their own characters and stories.  Lots of time to explore story writing and being creative.”
• “Giving further opportunities for the children to make up their own stories.”
• “The planning or story writing.”
• “How to collate the children’s ideas to make one story.”
• “Group story writing and team work.”

Use for the extra books:

• “To share our class’s story and ideas with the whole school.”
• “To read their stories to younger children in the school.”
• “In school library.”

Download a copy of the book: 25-Autumn-Gainsborough

Lincoln

The workshops took place both on Lincoln Bishop University Campus (using a lecture hall and The Venue) and in the school. The latter particularly on a day of torrential rain when walking them to the University was not viable.

The children particularly liked being at the University and were thrilled to have the use of a microphone when reading their stories out to the whole class.  This raised the number of children willing to read in the first class from 3 to almost the entire group.  We will add a microphone to our kit!

Nine students who are studying to be teachers volunteered to help.

Some comments from the children:

• “I think I want to become a story writer when I grow up because when we first started writing our story it inspired me”
• “I like when we get to share our ideas”
• “I loved all of it”
• “I liked how we can let our imaginations go”
• “We got to pick what we want in the stories”
• “it was amazing and good and I can be proud”.

Some comments from teachers:

• “To give the children more opportunity to use their imaginations”
• “It was great for them to use their ideas and be encouraged that no idea was a bad one”.
• “Not all of our children have books at home so it will be for them to take home and keep.  We are grateful for them”

The extra books will be “displayed in school” and be a “reminder of what they are capable of.”

Download a copy of the stories: 25-Autumn-Ermine