Poetry courtesy of the children of Thames View Junior School

In amongst the other photos, above centre, is LBBD Hub Officer Sekiyah at Thames Community Hub, showcasing Summer 2026's reading challenge, ​Read to the Beat.

Above, LBBD Hub Officers Janet, left, at Barking Learning centre; and Julia, centre, in the herb garden behind Valence Library. Right, Dagenham Library

I am so much looking forward to giving eight LAST ROSE performance workshops over four days for in the libraries of London Borough of Barking and Dagenham for school children. Thank you LBBD for hosting me! See events page for details of the events which are taking place the week of 29th June.

When I played at Armthorpe in March I could not have expected the extraordinarily warm welcome and abundance of preparation the library volunteers gave the LAST ROSE performance workshop. Jean Brook, the library volunteer who invited me to play there, had distributed all the tickets, decorated the library with her own rose-inspired arts and crafts, and she along with the other library volunteers made a delicious tea (including home-made scones, yum...). Jean even wore a rose-printed dress. They really entered into the spirit of the project, and I was taken aback by their generosity. Thank you!

Armthorpe became an entirely volunteer-run Community Library when it was threatened with closure in 2014. Galvanised by pioneer volunteer Ricky Collins, volunteers have been running it ever since, despite many being in the 80s, subsequently receiving community awards including a Doncaster Free Press Pride award, 2023 and 2024 Pride of Amrthorpe Awards, and a 2025 invitation to the Mansion House from a very impressed Civic Mayor, Tim Needham.

Thank you to Doncaster Echo and Doncaster Mumbler for the coverage they gave the LAST ROSE event on Instagram.