We have just published a third issue of our South East Schools Arts Paper, created for distribution through schools and other education settings. This issue focuses on the importance of arts and creativity to the lives and life chances of children and young people in the region.

Download your free digital copy here!

Artswork and partners are pioneering an approach to improving health and wellbeing through arts and culture through a new Partnership Investment with NHS Hastings and Rother Clinical Commissioning Group’s Healthy Hastings and Rother initiative. Part of a comprehensive programme of activity, the programme aims to improve health through the transformative East Sussex Better Together scheme.

Complementing this work, the Hastings and Rother Reducing Health Inequalities Fund aims to help local voluntary and community groups tackle health imbalance by encouraging and supporting people to make healthier lifestyle choices, as well as improving access to local healthcare and other support services. It particularly wants to target the most disadvantages and marginalised communities, and those at risk of poor health.

The fund is being supported with additional Partnership Investment from Artswork. This investment supports the early work of the Hastings and Rother Cultural Education Challenge; the Cultural Education Partnership for Hastings and Rother, led by Culture East Sussex in partnership with Skills East Sussex and the Hastings and Rother Arts Education Network. The challenge, in response to Arts Council England’s Cultural Education Challenge, supports Priority One of the East Sussex Cultural Strategy 2013-23 – “ to create an environment where great cultural experiences are available to everyone to enhance their quality of life”.

Find out more here...

Game On! was created in response to a brief as part of The Arts and Culture Investment Programme, co-supported by Artswork and the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. The programme aimed to reduce antisocial behaviour and youth offending rates through sustainable high quality arts and cultural activities, with Arts Council England’s Quality Principles at their heart.

A group of young people from Leigh Park (either already known to the police or recognised at risk of offending by their schools and other agencies) were invited to take part in the project, which ran from November 2016 to February 2017. All were consumers of games, but through this they were able to actually discover the processes and learn some of the techniques and skills involved in creating games for themselves. Working with the University of Portsmouth’s School of Creative Technology, the project introduced the young people to new activities, using creativity as part of a skill-building process.

Find out more about the project here...

This summer, we are hosting two celebration events to highlight the incredible work being carried out by Artsmark schools across the South East.

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June 15th | Turner Contemporary, Margate

Guest speaker: Lizzy Stewart, Illustrator (There's a Tiger in the Garden)

Lizzy was recently awarded the 2017 Waterstones Childrens Book Prize for There's a Tiger. She is also one half of independent publishers Sing Statistics and an Associate Lecturer at Goldsmiths College.

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July 5th | Corn Exchange, Newbury

Guest speaker: Tracey Corderoy, Children's Author (Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam series) 

Tracey is convinced that language is the key to stimulating learning and imagination. Author of over 45 children's books, Tracey has implemented specialist Literacy programmes and helped to reintegrate children returning to school following periods of long-term illness.

If you're an Artsmark school, book your free place now!

Call 02380 332491 or email artsmark@artswork.org.uk for more information

We had a great time celebrating with young people from the #DepartmentforDoingNothing last week - well done to all involved on your fantastic achievements as part of the @artexchangetate programme 🥇🥇🥇#DfDN / Images: (c) Xavier Fiddes

Experience the arts, see evidence of it working and be inspired to do more for young people

This one day conference provides opportunities for delegates to see and hear about the impact of arts and culture on the wellbeing of children and young people.

Organised by Artswork, the day will evidence how creativity can be used to enhance existing services and opportunities, through innovative case studies, interactive workshops and inspirational speakers.

Book your place now...

Navigating the Changing Educational Landscape

Southampton

Wednesday 14th June 

Book your place

Child Protection & Safeguarding in the Arts & Cultural sectors

York

Thursday 15th June

Book your place

Navigating the Changing Educational Landscape

Milton Keynes

Thursday 22nd June

Book your place

Implementing Diversity and Equality: Bridging Policy and Practice

Manchester

Wednesday 28th June

Book your place

Facilitation Skills

Birmingham

Thursday 29th June

Book your place

Evaluating Youth Arts Projects

Gateshead

Wednesday 12th July

Book your place

See the full list of our upcoming training courses here

Looking for a new challenge? Why not apply to join the Artswork team! We're looking for new team members across the organisation.

Find out more here...

It's amazing how long nothing can go on for! Following two packed days at Tate Modern in February as part of the Tate Exchange programme, a celebration was held at Artswork HQ in Southampton this month for all the young people involved to receive their well-deserved Arts Award certificates.

J said: “I’m more confident now. It gave me the confidence to go to college. [Being here] has opened my mind because I thought art had to be visual, but it can be anything, mental, physical, music…”

Read more here...

The Department for Doing Nothing has been invited to continue as a Tate Exchange Associate and is now beginning work towards the next phase of the Tate Exchange programme – Production. Watch this space for developments!

18 published children’s illustrators and comics artists across four countries have been commissioned to work with multilingual groups of gifted 16-24 year-old visual artists in 16 universities and colleges.

Guided by their artist-mentors, the 160 students will produce their own illustrated stories in a distinct ‘leporello’ format – then four publisher partners (Nobrow in UK, Päike Ja Pilv in Estonia, kuš! In Latvia,Vilnius Academy of Arts Publishing House in Lithuania) will produce small print-runs of each story. The resulting library – 33,000 copies of 160 original titles – will be presented alongside an exhibition of some of the best artwork during London Book Fair 2018, coinciding with the ‘Baltic Countries Market Focus’.

Some of the participating UK students will go on to access opportunities for children’s publishing-sector training and progression, supported by three UK Bridge organisations: Artswork, Festival Bridge, Royal Opera House Bridge.

Find out more here...

"A plan would offer young people the chance to develop their creativity in different ways. Some might pursue a career in the creative industries, or apply their creativity to science and technology. Some might become cultural leaders; others would simply enjoy a more fulfilling life, shared with those around them."

Read more from Darren Henley, Chief Executive of Arts Council England, here...

We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the following schools on their being awarded Artsmark.

• Bloxham Church of England Primary School
• Bromstone Primary School
• Dr Radcliffe’s Church of England Primary School
• Liphook Church of England Primary School
• Liphook Infant School
• Priory Infant School
• St Pauls Catholic Primary 

This is a fantastic achievement and we are really pleased to have been able to support them on this journey.

With Artswork’s Case Study support offer in place, schools gained valuable feedback on their work by liaising with one of our expert trainers. This opportunity provided schools with an opportunity for reflection and further development before their final submission to the Arts Council.

If you are an Artsmark school preparing to submit your Case Study, take a look at support available to you here...

We have a number of Arts Award adviser training dates across the South East. Follow the link below to find your nearest:

See here for more details...

@ArtsworkLtd thank you for the lovely article based on our STEAM projects @Bridgemary_Sch #STEAMin2017 @BmaryScience @BridgemaryMaths pic.twitter.com/FQoG6AKjJ9

Have you done something amazing in the arts? Do you know a young person who has achieved something brilliant?

ART31 are excited to be offering awards of £500 to young people to recognise their achievement in, or contribution to the arts in Kent, as part of UPrising.

Winners will be invited to UPrising, on Sat 15 July, to receive their £500 Awards to spend on an activity, opportunity or item related to their interests and ambitions within the arts. Young people can nominate themselves or be nominated by another individual, of any age.

Find out more...

Why not subscribe to our English National Youth Arts Network (ENYAN) newsletter too?

See the latest issue here