Shapcott teaches on the MA in creative writing at Royal Holloway, University of London. She was a visiting professor at the School of English Literature, Language and Linguistics, Newcastle University,[3] was a visiting professor at the London Institute and was Royal Literary Fund Fellow at Oxford Brookes University from 2003 to 2005.[4][5] She is a longstanding tutor for the Arvon Foundation.[6] and a former president of the Poetry Society.[7]
Shapcott was appointed as CBE in 2002. She initially accepted the honour but decided to refuse during the period when the British government made preparations to invade Iraq. She wrote to the Cabinet Office saying " I can't possibly accept this." She commented, "I was being diagnosed and treated for cancer, so great public statements weren't on the cards really. I was just too ill."[8][9][10]
In 2016, Shapcott was welcomed as a trustee to The Griffin Trust For Excellence In Poetry.[11] In 2019 she was a contributor to A New Divan: A Lyrical Dialogue between East and West (Gingko Library).
