Children at a school in Romford took part in a Guinness World Record bid with 200,000 other youngsters up and down the country to create the world’s largest poetry lesson.

Poet Neal Zetter dropped into The Compass School to run a workshop with performances and readings after assistant headteacher Claire Cohen invited him to meet pupils.

“Poetry teaches pupils so much about creativity,” she said. “It was a great way to express emotions and feelings.”

Compass is a small school in London Road for pupils with social or mental health needs, providing a broad curriculum as well as one-to-one support to help them understand their emotions.

The children met Zetter after reading his works in print and taking part in a national event involving schools, libraries and cultural venues with an estimated 1.5 million people on the day, including 200,000 children.