Clare Shaw was born in 1972 in Burnley, the youngest of six children, and moved to Liverpool at the age of 18 to study politics. Her years in the city were marked by frequent admissions to psychiatric wards, which motivated her to become involved in working to improve mental health services. In her work, postgraduate study, publications and activism, she has become a recognised voice on women’s mental health issues. She lives in West Yorkshire, and works in a self-harm awareness training partnership with her sister. She has given many readings, and was chosen one of the Arvon/Jerwood Young Writers of 2003-04.  Her first collection Straight Ahead (2006) was shortlisted for the Glen Dimplex New Writers' Award for Poetry.