#kingsland high street

The Ship of Adventures - Hackney Pirates, E8. Yesterday I visited a rather special place on the Kingsland High Street; bookshop, gift shop café and events space of the Hackney Pirates charity whose mission is “working to develop the literacy, confidence and perseverance of young people in Hackney, so that they achieve both in school and in the world beyond.” They use wild wondrous theme-ing of The Ship of Adventures to run reading and creative writing lessons and activities for children 9 to 12 to help them attain the learning and skills to prosper in life. Much of the young people’s work is formally published and available to buy in the shop! Plenty here for grown ups too; a good selection of top tomes for readers young and old, hand made crafts by the groups based in the project and outrageously good coffee and food. With every turn of the head you notice yet another facet of the very lovingly conceived space. Whether you have children or not, expect to spend several happy hours on your visit to The Ship of Adventures.  http://www.hackneypirates.org/shipofadventures/