Led by Jo Timmins, Lyra's Artistic Director and artist in residence Lou Brodie, Helen's Letters is an in-school residency project created by Lyra and inspired by the quiet determination and tenacity of Helen Crummy and her amazing work locally, nationally and internationally.

Awarded an MBE in 1972 and an Honorary Doctorate by Heriot-Watt University in 1993, Helen is one of the 100 women celebrated on the Travelling the Distance sculpture by Shauna McMullan at the Scottish Parliament.

The project explores the connections between girls, the women they look up to and the women who have an impact on their lives. It seeks to find ways for the participants to use their voices and ask the questions they'd like to ask, not the questions they are expected to ask. 

This intense and in-depth creative transformative experience is suitable for ages 8+. Helen’s Letters delivers key outcomes of raised aspiration and development of literacy skills.

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Groups of girls are invited into the Helen’s Letters tent, a beautiful, calm space designed by Valerie Reid that contains typewriters, dictionaries, stamps and stickers. Using creative exercises, games and activities the girls work with Jo and Lou to uncover what makes a role model, the women that are important to us and the beautiful art of letter writing.

Each girl is helped by a researcher to identify an inspiring woman and to write her a letter. Lyra then attempts to get the letter to the inspiring woman, encourages them to respond and, in a final session, the replies are handed to the girls. Each stage of the process is photographed and documented including the letters that are sent and replies received.

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For more information, please contact James Preston, Executive Producer james@lyra.co.uk