Explore a range of community-led Black History Month events taking place in Newham.
Nature Trails Re-Imagined Exhibition
1-31 October, Canning Town Library
For Black History Month 2025, Berkeley Homes partnered with Black entrepreneurs, award-winning author Venessa Taylor, and design practice IVY Studios to work with Year 6 students from Gainsborough Primary School. Together, they celebrated the legacy of Benjamin Zephaniah by reimagining his poem Nature Trails through original poetry and illustrations created by the students. An exhibition showcasing their work will be on display at Canning Town Library throughout October.
No booking required
Creative Writing Workshop with Luan Goldie
Monday 5 October, 10.30-11.30am, The Well Community Centre
Do you enjoy writing poems, short stories or lyrics? Have you ever wanted to write about your life but don’t know where to start? Do you feel storytelling is something you want to try for the first time? Join us for a fun and informal one hour writing workshop. Open to everyone, no matter your age or experience.
Led by local author Luan Goldie, the workshop will give you prompts and exercises designed to encourage you to put pen to paper.
No booking required
Contact: info@bonnydowns.org
FILM NIGHTS at The Source: Backrooms
Tuesday 13 October, 7-8.50pm, The Source
After a therapist's patient disappears into a dimension beyond reality, she must venture into the unknown to save him. Starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve and Mark Duplass.
Author Day with Florence Chukwuonye
Saturday 17 October, 12-1pm, Stratford Library
A special session for children and young people aged 8–17, exploring books, storytelling, poetry and creative writing. Attendees will meet Florence, hear about her journey as an author, and take part in a creative activity that encourages imagination, confidence and a love of reading.
Roots & Culture, Rhythms & Rhymes: Black History Month Showcase
Saturday 17 October, 2-4pm, Stratford Library
Join us for an inspiring afternoon of creativity, reflection, and celebration as we mark Black History Month at Stratford Library!
Roots & Culture, Rhythms & Rhymes brings together a vibrant mix of live poetry and music designed to celebrate the richness of Black African and Caribbean history, heritage, and present-day culture. Open to the general public and suitable for all ages, this community showcase highlights incredible local talent. Showcases featuring Rochelle LoRo, PJ Greaves, Essie B Music, Michael A Campbell, a special appearance by the RAFFA International Development Agency, and more amazing guests!
How Civilisations Remember: Twelve Technologies of African Knowledge, Memory and Transmission
Saturday 24 October, 6-7.30pm, Stratford Library
We are accustomed to thinking about knowledge as something preserved through books, formal institutions and written archives. But African societies also stored and transmitted knowledge through story, human memory, music, script, number, objects, land, time, seeds, symbols, language and technology. This talk introduces audiences to twelve resilient channels through which African civilisations made knowledge durable -- and reveals why so much of it survived everything that was thrown at it.
More events will be announced soon.
