MARLBOROUGH LitFest has launched an outreach programme, as a way to give back on the year of their 10th festival.

Every year Marlborough LitFest proudly offers free events with popular authors to invited local schools.

Since its launch in 2010, LitFest has reached more than 3,500 children with these author talks in Marlborough Town Hall.

This year, John Dougherty, poet and author of Stinkbomb and Ketchup Face, will be entertaining children from local primary schools and the prolific author, Geraldine McCaughrean will be this year’s Big School Read for secondary schools, hosted at St John’s Academy.

In addition to free events for schools in and around the town, LitFest is supporting a visit by children's author Maz Evans, to St Margaret’s Prep School, in Calne, where she will speak to other primary schools.

Maz Evans, journalist, children’s author, and feature writer will be giving two talks, one at 10.30am, one at 1.30pm, at St Margaret’s on September 19 to over 270 primary school children from eight local schools.

Maz Evans will be talking about her book Who let the Gods Out, about Greek mythology in modern day life, which was shortlisted for the Waterstone’s Childrens Book Prize 2017.

This will be the LitFest’s first outreach event, timed to happen for its 10th anniversary, where it gives opportunities for children to hear an author speak first hand and hopefully inspire them.

Outreach co-ordinator, and member of LitFest committee, Kate Fry is looking forward to giving back to the community after ten years of the festival.

She said: "Our aim as a festival is to expose good literature to everyone in the public.

"We wanted to spread this idea to local schools as we feel children should be able to speak to top authors as well."

LitFest is also working with the Friends of Erlestoke and the HMP Erlestoke library to support the provision of book bags for children visiting family members.

As well as this, the festival have arranged an author event with the LitFest Big Town Read author, Raynor Winn, who will be visiting the prison on Monday, September 30 as another side of their outreach programme.

For more information, or to book tickets, go to: https://www.marlboroughlitfest.org/