You are invited!

Last Autumn, we ran a project inviting local people to write about life in Harehills on our own terms.
People came from across the neighbourhood, and everyone produced a poem, from novice to experienced writers. This led to our guest slot at Chapel FM’s Writing on Air festival, where you can hear 6 of us reading our creations out for the first time.
Now you can come for free to listen to the Writing Our Harehills collective performing at Leeds Playhouse on Monday, 20th March, from 6pm in the Playhouse lobby. This is a family-friendly event with the chance to find out how you can join in with future writing groups. They’ll be some tasty snacks on offer too.
Leeds Playhouse has generously invited us to give feedback about:
What makes it easy for East Leeds residents to enjoy their facilities, and what makes it challenging?
Please share your comments, or email your ideas to natalie@eastsidestory.uk
Writing our Harehills is a collaboration between Leeds Playhouse’s former writer-in-residence Suhaiymah Manzoor Khan, Thackray Medical Museum community engagement worker Martha and community advocate Natalie. If you’d like to hear about creative writing opportunities, please contact us at Martha.Adebambo@thackraymuseum.org
You can read more about the talented spoken word artist
Suhaiymah Manzoor Khan, including her viral poem This is Not a Humanising Poem which placed her as runner-up of the National Roundhouse Poetry Slam in 2017 here https://www.suhaiymah.com/

Support independent community journalism!
East Side Story covers the people, places and stories in Leeds that are too often overlooked. While national headlines chase conflict and clickbait, we focus on real communities and the issues shaping daily life in East Leeds.
Divisive content, AI noise and online rumours spread faster than ever. At the same time, many mainstream outlets are stretched and rarely spotlight the community organisations and local champions who deserve recognition.
East Side Story was created to change that. We answer only to our readers. We have no corporate owners or billionaire funders. Our journalists report freely, ask difficult questions and hold power to account.
Your support helps us keep this work going. Monthly contributions make the biggest impact because they allow us to invest in deeper reporting and fearless local journalism.
Supporters also receive exclusive updates, behind the scenes insights and other benefits as a thank you for keeping independent journalism alive.