We couldn’t let the day pass without taking the opportunity to celebrate all of the authors, volunteers, teachers and collaborators we have worked with over the last 2 years. The number of stories in our vault grows ever larger and the gremlins in our printing press are having to work harder than ever - don’t worry, tomorrow is their day off.

We worked with Osprey Class on a thrilling tale of derring do, an evil genius and a helpful demon named Stephen. Our hero, Cluck, is a chicken with exceptional powers, but even he might struggle to defeat the might of Jack Fire!

Cogden Class has some very talented authors, as we discovered when we visited them this week. They wrote us a story that pitted the heroic B.O.T. (Beans On Toast) against the evil robber tomato, Miss Scarlet. With a little help from his sidekick, ‘The Sauce’ , maybe B.O.T. can still save the day.

The young authors at Loders took us into the heart of a mystery when we visited them, this week. Is Pedro the Pigeon really as grumpy as he first seems? Is Jeremy the Giraffe to be trusted? and will Mr Coffee help save the day or just go back to sleep?

It was lovely to see such a wonderful article written about the work we do in this months issue of Dorset magazine. Huge thanks goes out to all the amazing volunteers who make this all happen, plus Jess Morency for the wonderful words and Eddy Pearce for the amazing photography.

Can a class of Year 4 children from St Mary’s Primary School in Bridport write a brand new opera, from scratch? Yes. Yes they can.

An awesome group of Year 8s and Year 9s from Axe Valley Academy in Axminster have begun to unleash their stories on the world. Is anyone ready…?

After weeks of slapstick, re-writes and lots of silly giggling, our sketch comedy writing team finally got to pitch their ideas to the BBC!

We returned to Broadwindsor Primary School to meet up with some of the amazing authors from Years 5 & 6. They found another rollercoaster of a story featuring a police officer with a morbid childhood fear of ants. Can he put this phobia behind him long enough to investigate the mysterious death of world famous Sumo Wrestler, Barnaby Custard?

This week are young reporters at the Vault, interviewed Ian Bark, the mayor of Bridport and Caroline Parkins, owner of Leakers bakery for an article they are writing about the state of the High Street. You will be able to read the article in the next issue of What’s Going On? available as a quarterly subscription here. Please subscribe now and help support the charity to deliver more workshops.

We returned to St Catherine’s the following day to work with Hazel class on their story. This one is all about an alien who crash lands on earth and has to rescue his best friend the Asteroid from the clutches of the evil chicken. What could possibly go wrong? I bet you no one would have thought Charles would be off to London to abduct some children to celebrate!

Sycamore class at St Catherine’s Primary school in Bridport took us on a wonderful journey with Katie the police officer who unfortunately had a fear of criminals!

We are so lucky to have such a fantastic group of volunteers who offer their help and support to the charity and we got to say a little thank you last night for all their help.

This is our quarterly newspaper created by The Nightmare kids from The Vault. The paper is entirely created by the children attending our regular after school club and features interviews, opinion pieces, news and most importantly stories created by young writers.

Alex Green, Volunteer Coordinator, spoke to Eleanor James who has been named our November Featured Volunteer….

As part of our wonderful guidebook to Weymouth project, poet Kim Squirrell took us on a tactile journey of our senses.

We had a surprise guest say hello in our sketch comedy writing workshop at Colfox school. Who knows we may be writing for him soon?

We have three wonderful books available, each written by young writers from schools in West Dorset. Not only do you get an enjoyable read, but also every penny from the sale goes directly back into the charity to provide more FREE workshops to young writers.

This weekend we entered a team into the Mayor’s Christmas quiz and after holding the lead at the halfway point, we decided to let the other teams, since The Bank of Dreams & Nightmares was one of the two chosen recipients for the fundraising event itself.

Who is Emily Stewart? - I am a 19-year-old BA(Hons) Illustration student who is currently studying in Falmouth, Cornwall. I love drawing, watching movies, crafting and adventuring somewhere new. I was born in Weymouth, where I discovered my love for sea swimming and shell and sea glass collecting. My family has always inspired me and encouraged me to do what I love!