Frankie is appointed as Plymouth Young City Laureate

We are delighted to announce that our Deputy Head Student, Frankie Baldry has been awarded the Plymouth Young City Laureate 2024-25 with Literature Works. During her Laureateship, Frankie will undertake writing commissions and perform at events across the city.

Literature Works is a charity in South West England using words and stories to support creativity and wellbeing. Young writers aged between 14 and 19 at the time of entry, who live, work or study in Plymouth were invited to send in samples of their creative writing on the topics of ‘Plymouth, the Sea and Me’, as well as a piece of writing that best represented them as a writer. They all told us what they’d do with the role if they became Plymouth Young City Laureate.

The Laureateship is a partnership between Literature Works and Plymouth Culture. It gives a young writer the opportunity to represent their city in words, while also developing their creative practice through public writing commissions and events in the community.

Speaking about her appointment, Frankie said:

“I am absolutely delighted to have been chosen as Plymouth Young City Laureate! As a born and bred Janner, my writing is endlessly inspired by my family, my love of astronomy from nights stargazing on the moors and our shared ancient myths and legends. My aim in this role is to uplift marginalised voices within our city, in particular to champion queer and disabled youth to know the power of their words and have agency over their own stories. I can't wait to see what this amazing opportunity to connect with my community brings.”

Sabrina Candido - Sector Development Officer at Plymouth Culture said:

“As an organisation dedicated to fostering a vibrant creative cultural sector in the city, we are very happy to work with Literature Works on this programme that brings young voices to the spotlight and supports their career development. We can’t wait to see Frankie’s work as the new Plymouth Young City Laureate.”

Helen Chaloner, CEO of Literature Works said:

“It’s a delight to help develop young writers whenever we can and the support from Plymouth for this unique opportunity has been fantastic. We are looking forward to working with Frankie, helping her to develop and grow creatively while celebrating the city and its people.”

As part of Frankie's appointment, she was invited to Radio Devon to talk about the role and what it means to represent the city.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0jkgwj4 (Frankie's section starts from 2hrs 8 mins 30 seconds)