A charity that makes available recordings of poets reading their own work free of charge is appealing for donations and memberships after losing its Arts Council grant earlier this year. The Poetry Archive says on its website: “The Poetry Archive is the only charity wholly dedicated to the production, acquisition and preservation of recordings of significant poets reading their work aloud.

“We care for and preserve these uniquely valuable voices, which might otherwise be lost, so that future generations can continue to enjoy them. We make our own recordings of poets who write in the English language, and poets also donate copies of their own archives to us so we can look after them in the long term.

“Hearing how a poet speaks their own poems brings us a deeper level of understanding and enjoyment of the work and provides a rich resource for poetry lovers, explorers, teachers and students of all ages. We have a fundamental belief that poetry is for everyone so, as a charity, the funds we raise are used to record new poets and keep sharing these wonderful collections free of charge with you.”

The archive is regarded as valuable by schools, colleges and universities. Poet, academic and critic Ben Wilkinson said on X, formerly known as Twitter: “This is frustrating news. The Poetry Archive is a fantastic resource and must continue. I worked as an editor on the archive from 2009-17, adding many essential contemporary voices, and I regularly use it in my teaching. Poetry must be heard!” More details