We are delighted within University Schools Trust to celebrate the success of Roxana in Year 8 at St Pauls Way Secondary School, who has secured a place on the prestigious First Story Young Writers Residential with ARVON.

At the beginning of the summer she will travel to West Yorkshire to spend a week working alongside professional writers at Arvon through the First Story programme, developing her creative writing practice and exploring new approaches to storytelling. The residential is highly competitive, and selection is based on the strength of each application, making Roxana’s achievement particularly impressive.

This opportunity will allow Roxana to immerse herself in a community of young writers from across the country, sharing ideas, receiving expert guidance and building confidence in her voice as a writer. She will benefit from sustained writing workshops peer collaboration and feedback from experienced authors all of which will support her growth and ambition.

Experiences such as this enable young people to refine their craft broaden imagination and see themselves as part of a wider creative and literary community beyond their school environment.

This marks the second consecutive year that a student from St Pauls Way Secondary School has been successful in gaining a place on this programme reflecting the strength of our wider First Story partnership and commitment to developing student voice and talent. We are incredibly proud of Roxana’s achievement.

Opportunities such as these are a clear representation of our mission to provide transformational education, due to the amazing experiences provided to our learners that raise aspirations and open pathways for future success.