As part of my We Are Marshy Folk project I visited Yarborough Academy Year 5 on January 22nd. I talked to the students about Toothill, a huge Ice-Age mound that once acted as a look-out tower and would have been directly opposite their school. It was great to be able to talk to a class of eager and interested students about an area of town that doesn't normally get much attention. They went on to create their own mounds and islands thinking about what they would need to live

The reeds remember... Ask most people what comes to mind when we talk about the East or West Marshes of Grimsby, and what's likely is a row of terraced housing or statistics about areas of deprivation. An image of salt marsh or sheep grazing is unlikely to be the first thing you think of. We Are Marshy folk is a CreateNEL-funded project that aims to change that view with illustrated research into what our landscape looked like before the coming of the railways and the docks.

This illustration is talking about how we don't associate Grimsby with sheep, but that we definitely did have them! Over the last year I've been doing reserach for my We Are Marshy Folk project, and busily turning what I've found out into meaningful illustrations to make the story simple and engaging. My years in journalism taught me how to craft data and information into stories that people can catch onto and take away with them. This project has always been about creating a

I gave the first of my We Are Marshy Folk talks to the Civic Society in the Town Hall on Thursday night (15th January 2026). It was an amazing turn-out for such a dreary and wet January evening. I've been working on this project for nearly a year and it was so amazing to be be able to talk about all of my findings about sheep, the Fitty land and how the mounds and marshes in this area shaped the town. I'm giving another talk today at Grimsby in Bloom 11am if you want to know

Blow wells are part of our area's unique features. I'm still researching for my We Are Marshy Folk project, but until the main body of work goes up at Our Big Picture in February 2026 some of the illustrations and art can be seen at Freeman Street market, and also the cafe in the Fishing Heritage Centre, until the end of 2025. x

In 2024 I was supported by a Develop Your Creative Practice grant from Arts Council England. As part of this project I was inspired to handmake a book of C words, that would be a sort of bible to consult my my mental health struggles threatened to overwhelm. It's amazing just how many C words I was able to come up with and illustrate for this little leather-bound book. This is just three pages, Cherish, Community and Creativity. Pages and ideas to turn to when days can be a s

Busy hands making a sea-themed mural. On Saturday November 1 I was asked by Our Big Picture to deliver a session as part of their Heritage Explorers project. I used this opportunity to spread the word about my We Are Marshy Folk research and worked with the children to produce a marsh and mound themed mural that got them looking at what life might have been like for the early inhabitants of our area and how important the water and marshes would have been.

Rosie basks in the sunshine. This weekend brought the first of my winter rituals. Bringing in my pots of pelargoniums from the garden. Although we haven't had a frosty start to November for a few years, these plants aren't frost hardy, so each year they see out the winter in the garden room, forming a backdrop to the midwinter decorations. They are still in flower, such dense pinks and reds that they resist any attempts for me to commit their gaudy beauty to my sketchbook. In

My third newsletter went out at the beginning of the month. I sent out my third newsletter, A Slice of Niceness, at the beginning of October. I was inspired to do these as the world can seem a bit grim at the minute, and I wanted to send something bright and cheery to people's inboxes. Each newsletter is designed to give an overview of what I've been up to, what's happening with the chalet, and what workshops or activities might be available. If you'd like to add your email t

Nature Noticing in Town Holt. This year I've been lucky enough to be funded to do some research into Grimsby's historic landscape from CreateNEL and Paul Henderson's Yarborough ward funding . As part of this, I've put on some Nature Noticing walks. Yesterday myself and the Canoe River Cleaner took some home ed students out to Town's Holt. We had a really informative afternoon looking at nettles, drawing leaves and clouds and talking about phragmites and water levels. This is

Doggerland. When we were conncted to mainland Europe via one great marsh! Where east meets west. Until Christmas I'll be displaying a project called of Mounds and Marshes at the Fishing Heritage Centre cafe in Grimsby. It's a collection of my ongoing research into the Seven Hills of Grimsby thanks to ward funding from Paul Henderson, and my We Are Marshy Folk work funded by CreateNEL. As I do more illustrations I plan to put them up in the cafe, so it will hopefully be quite

Mums and kids worked together to create a watery, marshy background using lots of materials. Children put their islands onto their 'sea' and made ways to connect. This week I worked with a group of some homes-schoolers to create a collaborative piece of work as part of my engagement for my We Are Marshy Folk project. We talked about how special our local landscape is, and we looked out of the Waterworks Offices window to the street down below to where the Haven once rang. It

July's salt marsh in full mauve magnificence. July's high tides overturning the blooms of sea lavender were an amazing sight. I found...

Tetney marshes journaling page As I've been living at the Fitties for the last few weeks, I thought I'd take a bike ride along the coast...

Me offering a helping hand to a southern migrant dragonfly that had fallen into the water and got its wings wet. On 24 September myself...

Memories of the hill alongside Cambridge Road. As part of my research into the Seven Hills I asked the ever-helpful Grimsby Memories...

My son really took to swimming off the Fitties beach this summer. I have several friends who are cold-water swimming advocates, but I'd...

Poem for my We Are Marshy Folk project. ' The gulls are the sound of this town, and will continue to be, as land that used to be sea...

Echolands by Duncan Mackay My working days often take place against the background of the podcast The Rest is History . I first heard...

Steve Lovell talk, my notes! As part of my We Are Marshy Folk research I attended an RSPB talk on 15 September. It was by Steve Lovell ...