Project Story

Illustration by Rachel Biddulph

The We Wish project has grown out of a collaboration between the NSPCC and University College Falmouth, but has also brought together the skills and energies of many other individuals, groups and companies throughout Cornwall.

It began in February 2006, when the College announced a writing competition open to all children aged 7-11 across Cornwall. They were asked to write poems, stories and non-fiction pieces on the theme ‘I wish’. Hundreds of kids from about 40 schools took part, and the schools each sent a selection of their entries.

These were then judged by two well-known children’s authors who live in Cornwall – Louise Cooper and Karen King – and 27 children were awarded book-token prizes. All their work is included in We Wish, along with many of the other best entries. In their introduction to the book, Karen and Louise say that it was extremely hard to choose prize-winners, as the overall standard was so high!

The children’s work was edited by students on the Professional Writing MA course at Falmouth, and students on the College’s Illustration BA (Hons) course created colour illustrations to accompany each text. These were then beautifully integrated by book designer Peter Bennett.

In the meantime, the award-winning actress Thandie Newton, who grew up in Cornwall, had kindly agreed to write a foreword to the book. She was working on a film in Hollywood, so a folder of the children’s work was sent out for her to read in her trailer on the movie set!

Books cost a lot to produce, but luckily a generous sponsor stepped forward in the shape of the Truro-based accountancy firm Kelsall Steele. In June, sixty of the company’s staff between them walked the entire length of the Cornish coastline to raise money to cover production costs – which means that all the money raised by selling We Wish can go straight to the NSPCC.

In her foreword to We Wish Thandie Newton writes:

“The young will change the world. The kids writing on these pages will take their wishes, their dreams for the future, and tread the path to a brighter tomorrow. What better place to start that pilgrimage than from the ancient cradle of Cornwall?”

We Wish was launched at Falmouth Festival of Literature and Arts on 7 October 2006. Over a hundred children and about 200 grown-ups gathered to celebrate, with several children reading their work to rapturous applause.