I recently returned to Plashet School in Newham, London, where I was lucky enough to spend three years as poet-in-residence, between 2014 and and 2017. I spent the day working with classes of Year 7 girls, where the theme was to explore ideas connected with 'British Identity'. Plashet is notable in having a vast majority of students from an Asian background, most of whom speak more than one language. We looked at Benjamin Zephaniah's poem '
The British', which is written in the form of a recipe. With this in mind, I encouraged the students to think about their own ideas as to what constitutes 'Britishness'. I encouraged them, in fact, to cast their nets wider and to think about their identity in a much broader sense. I am excited to share four fantastic poems that were produced during my workshops at Plashet.
I Come From by Eerum (Year 7)
I come from chocolate cookies.
I come from apple tarts.
I come from endless cakes and milkshakes
and this is just the start.
I come from a place called Britain,
sweet like a fruit but spicy like a chilli.
I come from a place where the flavours can vary
and each bite will give you a unique feeling.
I come from a place where it’s cold.
I come from a place where it’s hot.
I come from a place where it rains all day
and looks like it will never stop!
Britain is like a piece of cake,
it’s easy to make with the right ingredients.
With the same amount of heat and the same amount of cold
and you’ve made a tremendous cake.
What’s the flavour, you ask?
it’s not chocolate,
not vanilla, not strawberry.
It’s British.
Recipe by Rahab (Year 7)
Take a dose of care
and leave it to settle.
Then add tolerance to the mix.
Take a lick.
Still a little bitter?
Add lots of democracy.
Don’t forget
a right to a good education -
a vital ingredient
for the perfect recipe of life.
Mix the law in there.
Nearly there.
Then take a blend of sweet equality,
combine with a mix of religion
and a large dose of community.
The perfect recipe for life.
My Britain by Kahloon (Year 7)
Britain is salt and pepper
with a pinch of Asian spices
Britain is fluffy
with solid rocks at the corners
Britain is a light spread of unity and equality
Britain is the feeling of a merry-go-round
Britain is a flag of a mansion
Britain is where uniqueness and individuality is popular
Britain is where Brexit takes over
gentle flowing streams
Britain is Theresa May farting [!!! - ed.] on paperwork
Britain is the scent of shepherd’s pie with mustard
Britain is hope with a bright red cherry on top
Britain Is… by Nadira (Year 7)
Britain is my past,
Britain is my future
Britain is my present,
where I live as a peasant.
Britain is like a fruit mix
where you have a combination of cultures,
Britain is a world
where love and hate is spread
Britain has people known as ‘friends’,
who betray, hate and hurt my feelings.
Such ‘friends’ are a stab in the back,
They don’t have a heart,
They lack,
If they did have a heart
They would come back.
Britain makes me feel unloved,
I don’t feel adored,
My friends don’t love me
If they did they wouldn’t dump me,
I don’t know who I am any more
Britain doesn’t seem like my destiny or future,
Britain was my past.
