Poetry Workshops
& Retreats

Workshops

Active Craft Poetry for authenticity, creativity and presence.

Public Workshops

Lia offers free public workshops, at the Cat & Mouse Library in Islington, North London.  The main programme, teaching poetry forms, runs from February to July, on the second Saturday in the month. Booking is essential. Leaflets for the 2026 programme will be available in Autumn.

The Autumn programme, October to December, consists of two courses plus a poetry reading. 

The Advanced Course is for people who have completed the main programme. That runs the second Tuesday in October, November and December.  Preparatory work applies.

The Group Poetry sessions are drop in workshops, creating jam style group poetry.  These sessions are on the second Saturday in October, November and December.

The Spooky Poetry Reading is on the last Saturday in October.  If you want to contribute an original spooky or scary poem, and read at the event, the length of entry is set at 30 lines + 3 max.

Leaflets will be available in Archway Library and the Cat & Mouse Library from September.

Private Workshops

Organisations can book Lia to provide one of her library courses without changes.  She will also modify a course or workshop, or create a bespoke event from scratch.  Fees apply. 

Take a look at the Teambuilding page, here, for information about bespoke poetry workshop options.

Personal Retreats

The Summer Poetry Retreat is now available to book.

This face to face retreat, in Waterlow Park, will use the colours, textures, scents and shapes of Nature found in the park, to inspire you to write new poems. The contained space of short poem forms are an accessible way to reclaim your poetry writing practice and develop your skills for showcasing specificity and place.

The full retreat is 3.5 hours.  A curated set of exercises will be prepared to match the time availability of the client.

The fee:

Short retreat (3 exercises) 1.5 hours = £150 per person, for one participant plus facilitator.

Full retreat (7 exercises) 3.5 hours = £350 per person.

If two people want to attend the short retreat together, a two hour session is required.

The fee is £200 x 2 people = £400 for two participants plus facilitator.

The full retreat is not available for two or more people.

How to Book:

Use the contact form.  Here is the link. Include your preferred week or at least three days you can be available. 

The Summer Poetry Retreat Audio Course, with transcript, is now available. It covers all the exercises in the 3.5 hour retreat.

The retreat is designed for a park of your choice, or to be completed in the comfort of your home. The course is yours to keep, and can be shared with one person in your household. The cost is £45.

Audio Retreats in development

1. The Autumn Poetry Retreat - Audio Course

Using the colours, textures, scents and shapes of Autumn found in Waterlow Park, to inspire and write new poems.

2. Nourish - The Poetry Retreat Audio Course

Using the nourishing environment of a park to write self healing and self care poems. Working within the contained space of short poem forms to express your silenced stories and heartfelt dreams.

The Facilitator

Lia is a veteran personal development trainer, facilitator, consultant and coach. She has a Master's Degree in Education, Training & Development. And she is a Master Practitioner of NLP.  Lia has been running poetry classes for three years, and is a regular reader of her own poetry at community events.

Here are some comments by Lia's poetry students:

"Lia is inspiring ."

"Lia gently makes you work hard, which is rewarding."

"A space to be creative.'

"New information."

"Life changing to see the world in another way."

"Lia loves and enjoys what she does."

"You learn and are inspired to learn new forms."

"Positive, yet sensitive challenges."

"Good handouts and inspiring ideas."

"Expands the mind "

"Trying a new challenge and stretching my abilities."

"Lia challenges constructively and helps build your skills, while being reassuring."

"You will improve as a poet while enjoying the experience."

"Satisfaction in writing a poem in such a short time."

"To experience the joy of words."

"In depth positive feedback."

"I think Lia is very sincere about her love of poetry."

"Gave me pleasure and confidence to write poetry."

"It takes the pressure off of writing poetry. Lia is very positive with her feedback."

"Very accessible, informative and supportive."

"Learning and expression made fun."