Outgoing SPL Tom Wyre (left) congratulates me at Shire Hall on 2/10/14 during my inauguration
It was an honour and privilege to be asked to spearhead poetry in Staffordshire in 2014/15 with my appointment as Staffordshire Poet Laureate, effective from 2/10/14.
My predecessors, Mal Dewhirst and Tom Wyre, have laid firm foundations for me to build on. I am looking forwards to writing about Staffordshire, its people and places, as well as its landscape, and in involving others of all ages and abilities.
Founder SPL Mal Dewhirst (far right) offers me some welcome tips.
Gary Longden, 25/9/14
Garyswordz 
Hi Gary.
May I be one of the first to congratulate you on a very deserved success in becoming my successor as the next Staffordshire Poet Laureate. As I come to the end of my tenure, literature is riding high on a crest of a wave and I am assured that it will very much continue to do so in your capable hands. All the very best once more friend. Tom Wyre.
Thank you. Your energy and commitment will be a tough act to follow,