About the opportunity
English PEN has opened applications for two five-day residencies.
The residencies will take place between May and July 2026, during and after which the two residents will write new short non-fiction for our online magazine, PEN Transmissions.
Applications are open to writers currently based in England who identify as experiencing displacement – including (but not only) refugee writers, writers seeking asylum, and writers in exile. Please read the eligibility information below in full.
The selected residents will be able to choose to undertake their residency with one of three partner hosts – a private, quiet apartment in London; a private apartment in an arts and culture centre in London; or a private room in a shared rural residential property in Southwest England. The residencies will take place in one of the weeks available at the resident’s preferred location, detailed below. The costs of the residency – accommodation, travel, and subsistence – will be fully covered by English PEN.
Applicants are asked to provide an outline of an idea for a piece of short non-fiction they would like to write, and relevant information about their work and their interest in the opportunity. Applicants can work in any language, but applications should be submitted in English. Applicants do not need to be members of English PEN.
Applications will be reviewed by the English PEN team, and potential residents will meet online with English PEN staff to ensure all expectations, needs, and aspects of the residency are appropriate before confirming the residencies. Residents will be able to choose whether their residency and the piece they write are publicly credited, or if they would prefer to remain anonymous. Please note that each residency is for one person, and we cannot accommodate dependents.
During the five-day independent residential period, residents will be able to organise their time and rest and write as they wish. After the residential period, they will work over the proceeding months with English PEN’s editorial team on their piece, which will be published in PEN Transmissions on a mutually agreed date in 2026. After the residency, we will continue to discuss with residents how they can work and connect with English PEN and our partners.
The deadline for applications is 11.59pm UTC on 2 March 2026. If you have any queries about the call, please email [email protected], and they will be directed to appropriate members of the English PEN team. We will inform applicants of the results of their application by 13 April 2026.
These short residencies are generously supported by the David McClure Trust Fund.
Applicants who have been granted refugee or human protection status have no Home Office-imposed immigration restrictions on their right to work or volunteer, and this residency is fully open to you. Asylum seekers who arrived in the UK without a visa, as visitors, or who claimed asylum after the expiry of their visa, are generally not permitted to work while their claim is being considered under the Immigration Rules. They may only apply for permission to work if no initial decision has been made after 12 months and the delay is not due to their own actions. However, we have taken advice and as this residency is a personal development opportunity and not paid employment or volunteering, we have confirmed that it is open to asylum seekers, as described above, too. We encourage you to consult with your caseworker at the Home Office if you require clarification regarding your own position.
To apply please download and complete the required forms using the buttons below.