Ty Newydd Writers Centre, Llanystumdwy, Cricieth
Fee: £220 (single room) / £180 (shared room)

This course is the first residential of its kind in the UK. As well as giving voice, there is a growing body of evidence that creative writing can promote better health and well-being. But how do we ensure that people with dementia are not excluded from the benefits of creative writing? The course will explore the newly opened up area of creativity in relation to a marginalised but growing section of the population. It will look in depth at the practical and ethical issues involved, and be illustrated by readings, DVDs and sound recordings. The course is suitable both for writers and for people working in health and social care.

Karen Hayes is a poet and librettist specialising in multi and cross-arts collaboration. She works with people whose voices are unheard, particularly people with dementia, and has published two anthologies of poetry in the field: Only Just Orchid and The Edges of Everywhere, with a third due, Try To Remember, which celebrates a two year residency in rural Gloucestershire. Karen has been poet in residence in numerous projects involving marginalised communities.

John Killick has been writing poetry with people with dementia for twenty years, and six books of the poems have been published. He was Research Fellow in Communication Through the Arts at Dementia Services Development Centre in the University of Stirling for six years. He is currently poet in residence at the Courtyard Centre for the Arts in Hereford, where he is mentoring three other poets. His most recent book is Playfulness and Dementia (Jessica Kingsley Publications).

There are a number of bursaries available for this course. To apply for a bursary click here or contact Ty Newydd: 01766 522 811 / tynewydd@literaturewales.org

For more information and to book your place