THE ART of poetry - and town crying - has been demonstrated to pupils in Otley.

Otley Town Poet Matthew H Stoppard and Otley Bellman Terry Ford visited Prince Henry's Grammar School for World Poetry Day on Tuesday, March 21.

The pair helped Year 7 students find their voice as they enjoyed a poetry workshop as part of their Personal, Health, Social and Citizenship Education Day.

Mr Ford gave a demonstration of the technique of town crying before Mr Stoppard set the children the task of writing their own verse.

The visitors said: "It was a huge privilege to meet the young writers.

"Fantastic work, thoughtful poetry and excellent delivery!"

Student Oliver Hallidie Smith created this poem during the workshop:

The high pitch yowl of a cat,

The harmonic sound of a choir,

The broken noise of a voice going flat,

And the hissing whisper of a liar.

Faculty Leader in English at Prince Henry's, Annie Cunniffe, said: "This was a great opportunity for students to experience poetry beyond the page and the work they produced was really inspiring."

Other visitors on the day led sessions on topics including homophobic bullying, sex and relationships education, exam stress, fair trade, drugs, domestic violence, asylum seekers, personal finance and safe driving.