A group in Hounslow which uses poetry to fight racism and extremism has been awarded a £15,000 grant.
Poetical Word was founded a year ago to promote education through spoken word and poetry, and it runs a monthly open mic night and regular workshops.
The group also produces spoken word videos tackling issues like racism, extremism and intolerance in general, with titles like A Letter to ISIS and Mr Racist.
It is one of two artistic companies to be awarded £15,000 over the next three years by Creative People and Places.
The grants for Poetical Word and Feltham -based drama group Tale Be Told Theatre are funded by Hounslow Council and come with one-to-one support from the Real Business Club and the chance to raise their profile through networking sessions.
Quddous Ahmed, co-founder of Poetical Word, said the money would help the group step up its marketing, secure bigger headliners for its monthly open mic nights and organise more events.
'We try to rekindle the wonder we had as children'
"We want to show the whole world how we can educate people and open their minds to learning as adults, not necessarily through the mainstream education system but by educating ourselves as human beings," he said.
"There's something which happens when we leave the education system. We forget how to learn and we lose this state of wonder we had as children.
"Just one comment can change your whole day, and we try to harness that power and rekindle the wonder we had as children through our spoken word and poetry."
Poetical Word's free open mic nights take place at Restaurant Carpatica, in Bath Road, Hounslow, on the last Thursday of each month, from 7pm-9.30pm, and are streamed live on the internet.
The group's monthly master classes, open to people of all ages, are held at the restaurant on the same day, from 5pm-6pm.
For more about the group, visit the Poetical Word website .
