Looked after young people
pARTicipate
'pARTicipate' is an ongoing piece of development work in Walsall for young people living in the care of the local authority.
The work is a partnership between the Outreach Team (Social Care and Supported Housing) and Creative Development Team. The aim of the project is to facilitate an ongoing ‘steering group’ of teenagers (Team A) to design, budget for, mentor on and evaluate arts projects that increase the communication between Looked After Young People and the Authority that is responsible for their care. The plan is that the project eventually becomes a mainstreamed piece of work with sustainable funding.
The project has given looked after young people in Walsall the opportunity to:
Participate in narrow boat trips to enhance and develop planning and team work skills, develop skills in visual arts, participate in the production of a theatre performance based on issues young people in care face as well as develop skills in a variety of other art forms.
“pARTicipate provided a group of Looked After young people with many opportunities to express their views, make decisions and communicate with professionals through the design of and participation in a number of highly successful and enjoyable arts projects. Involvement in pARTicipate had a highly positive impact on self esteem and confidence, and the young people showed an outstanding degree of commitment and determination, often in spite of challenging circumstances.” Lisa Jacob, external evaluator
This page was last updated on 28 May 2008