In 2015 Tony Harrison, Winner of the David Cohen Prize for Literature, nominated the Wordsworth Trust to receive the Clarissa Luard Award. This award, funded by Arts Council England, is given annually to a writer under the age of 35 or an organisation that supports young writers. The Wordsworth Trust has chosen to use the Award to fund a series of month-long residencies between September 2016 and March 2017.

The residency offers an invaluable opportunity for exceptional poets under 35 years of age, from any cultural background and writing within any literary tradition, to spend time in the heart of the Lake District, an area of exceptional natural beauty that so much inspired William Wordsworth. You will have the opportunity to respond creatively to the Wordsworth Trust’s outstanding collection of manuscripts, books and fine art and to contribute to our exciting Heritage Lottery Fund project, 'Reimagining Wordsworth'. 

Each poet will be paid a fee of £1,750 for a one-month residency. For the duration of your residency you will be provided with a self-catering cottage a short walk from Dove Cottage. The Wordsworth Trust will reimburse work-related expenses such as travel and materials.