A charity is hoping to help residents beat the January blues by offering free “bespoke poetry” to town centre passers-by.

The Margery Kempe Trust, a life-writing charity set up in a bid to preserve Lynn residents’ stories, took over one of the empty pods on Purfleet Street a few months ago.

It aims to provide a working space for creative people, while allowing shoppers walking along the street to see them at work.

Now, it is getting the public involved, as local poet Savannah Andrews is taking up residence in the pod for the remainder of the month.

She has been writing personalised poems for passers-by, which has been a roaring success so far.

Savannah has been busy typing away poems about West Norfolk residents who decided to pop in.

The Margery Kempe Trust says the first event two weekends ago went “extremely well” and was “well-received” by members of the public.

This is part of the charity’s new ‘Slow You Down’ initiative, supported by Norfolk County Council’s arts project fund and West Norfolk Council.

“January can feel like a long, grey month,” said James Goodman-Stephens from The Margery Kempe Trust.

“Thanks to the support of West Norfolk Council, we’re keeping the Purfleet Story Pod open into the new year.

“We want to keep a spark of imagination alive on Lynn’s high street.

“Seeing a writer at work reminds us that creativity is a practice, not some mysterious magic trick. We hope that seeing the process in action, and receiving a free, personal poem, will inspire the people of Lynn to embrace their own creativity in 2026.”

During the week, passers-by can look through the glass to see local writers drafting, editing and creating in real-time.

Savannah writes poems free of charge and will be in the Purfleet Street pod on Saturdays and Sundays in January from 12-2.30pm.

Last year, The Margery Kempe Trust lost out on the chance to take on Lynn’s historic Carnegie library building.

It challenged Norfolk County Council’s decision-making process in a High Court case, but lost.