A poet from Menston has had her work showcased on a BBC Sounds Programme that she co-created last year.

Ella Sanderson, 22, a graduate from Ilkley Writers, took part in a talent programme called New Creatives, and has now found that her work is being broadcasted by the BBC.

The BBC Sounds programme called ‘Wired Different: a window into Asperger’s’ discusses topics including neurodivergence, religion and being human, and features some of Ella’s most performed poems.

Ella said: “I cried when I heard the BBC wanted to share my work and so did my mum”

“On the programme I speak about religion, and things that inspire me, like nature, but mostly about Asperger’s and autism and how the world is not designed for us.”

Ella now wants to inspire other people with Asperger’s and autism, to ‘keep on going and to never give up,’ and to also give people a better understanding of the condition.

“Society is hard for people with Asperger’s”, Ella added, “as we have to mask ourselves which is a bit hard to do.”

“If people understood and accepted autism and Asperger’s a bit more it would be easier because we wouldn’t have to mask as much.”

‘Masking’ is a term used to describe how autistic people sometimes mimic or hide certain behaviours to feel more accepted in society.

Ella said she discovered her love for the English language at school, and found that she was ‘always writing stories about things she was interested.'

She added: “When I finished school, I joined Ilkley Writers and it’s been great because from there I’ve learnt about poetry and performance skills, and I’ve had paid work from it so it has been a great first step."

Ella said she often writes about her ‘washing machine brain’ and in a ‘snappy’ style because of her autism.

She has already had a successful writing career, as she was involved in a project in 2015 called ‘Stanza Stones’ with Simon Armitage, and was published in the accompanying anthology.

She has also performed as part of BBC Words First competition and founded a local mic night called ‘Speak Out’ in Menston.

Her goal is to carry on writing and get her work across as many different platforms as possible.