Blue Space is a Poetry School commissioned project taking place in Leeds in Autumn 2026, in partnership with Yorkshire Design Group and Canal & River Trust. This project is part of the Seasons of Culture Programme funded by West Yorkshire Combined Authority and Leeds City Council through the Leeds Cultural Investment Programme.
Below is a poem by Kate Simpson, commissioned by the Poetry School and inspired by Leeds’ waterways. You can read Kate’s blog and the process that inspired the poem here.
Design by Lisa Barrett
Project Events
As part of the project, there will be a series of events organised around looking closer at nature and the stories around our blue spaces. These include:
Poetry Walk workshop with riverboat dwelling poet Sammy Weaver – 22 October 2026
‘Site-Specific Nature Poem’ conversation event TBC
