OR books announced that, on the 14th of November, Jeremy Corbyn and Len McClusky are set to publish a poetry collection titled ‘Poetry for the Many’. Featuring their favourite poems from the likes of Shakespeare and Maya Angelou alongside contributions from Russell Brand, Maxine Peake and Michael Rosen, ‘Poetry for the Many’ intends to encourage readers to embrace poetry and shake off any notion it’s something to be dismissed as ‘posh’. Whilst there are reports of the educational benefits of reading poetry with 80% of teachers believing that poetry is a significant part of a literacy curriculum, still only 39% of teachers have had development training on poetry. Rutger Bruining, CEO and founder of the UK’s leading biography-writing service, StoryTerrace, discusses how poetry should be accessible for people from all walks of life.

From Shakespeare to T.S Eliot, poetry has shaped the world of literature we know of today. Yet traditionally, poems have been the work of art that have been a medium read and studied by the affluent. As of lately, we have seen the resurgence of reading with social media trends, such as BookTok, reigniting children’s love of literature. However, poetry still remains left behind with a survey showing that only 20% of children read poetry outside of school and with more than 60% of those engaging with on-screen lyrics. Poetry has a high number of educational benefits for young children such as building vocabulary and encouraging creativity, discovered by Reading Partners. Speaking about the release of his poetry collection, McClusky stated that “It should be mandatory on the national school curriculum to make poetry accessible to every child and student, so that the stigma in working-class communities about it being only for ‘posh people’ can gradually be eliminated”.

Rutger Bruining, Founder and CEO of StoryTerrace, comments on how poetry should be accessible for all:

“As of this year we have witnessed a surge in people engaging with literature – BookTok and celebrity memoirs are what I believe have made reading ‘cool’ again. With poetry however, it still is seen as an old form of literature and traditionally has been saved for those that come from a privileged background, yet everyone should be able to be able to enjoy and learn from such a beautiful and powerful form of literature.

Since the advent of StoryTerrace, we have seen literature have the power to inspire and uplift people from all walks of life – and this is what truly lies at the core of our ethos, giving everyone a space to share their story and to explore the nuances of their lifetime through the power of literature.

Since the pandemic – we have witnessed the meteoric rise in interest in books and literature as a whole. Resurfacing as a popular pastime, both children and older generations find solace in the world of books. It is vital for the public to ensure that literature remains an accessible space .”