Make Hay - A Creative Residency Project
In July 2025, a pilot Hay Festival Creative Residency in Hereford's St Thomas Cantilupe Church of England Primary School saw five artists work with the pupils to create a community performance based on their stories. St Thomas Cantilupe’s two hundred pupils all participated in a collaborative week-long workshop that celebrated the 21 languages spoken.
This project called “Make Hay’, continued to grow in 2026 with Perry Wood Primary School, Worcester, where 6 artists created a performance with over 300 learners based on stories gathered and woven together by the residency’s Writer-in Residence, Steven Camden.
Both the schools hosted their very own Hay Festivals over a one-week period. Artists in the field of dance, drama, poetry, dance and music worked intensively with pupils from Reception to Year 6 at the school to create, devise, build and perform their own Festival. At the end of the week, a multi-media promenade event was held for family, friends and the wider community, supported by the Hay Festival team.
The artists involved in these residencies are:
Artist Sarah Morton, composer Aaron Diaz and Archie Purdue, theatre maker Toni Cook, Dancer and musician Landing Mané, choreographer Sonia Sabri MBE, children’s Laureate Wales Alex Wharton, writer in residence Steven Camden and composer and choir leader Olivia Preye.
Please watch our Make Hay films below...
Perry Wood Primary Schools (2026)
St Thomas Cantilupe (2025)
