Creative YOUCreativity is everywhere. Opportunity is not. We are part of the solution. The secret is in our name. Every year Creative Youth Network gives thousands of young people a taste and thirst for the arts and culture and the joy, life-skills and opportunity they bring. But we want more. Creative YOU is our campaign showcasing how we, you and the engaged, emerging and amazing young creatives we support, come together. We want to reveal how, together, we are ambition, quality, cultural democracy and social mobility in action. Every young person deserves the right to access creativity and development opportunities in the creative and cultural industries. It all starts with education. If all young people have access to creative subjects in school, then talented young people from all backgrounds can pursue their passion, develop crucial skills needed in so many industries and improve their wellbeing. 1. Pledge Add your name and join the many people passionate about bringing creativity back into our schools. With all the pledges we’ll be reaching out to headteachers in Bristol and the South West. We hope this will encourage local academies to give more space to creativity in their curriculum. Bristol, being the creative city we know and love, can pave the way for other regions to do the same, showcasing the true value of creativity. PLEDGE 2. Sign up Join us by signing up to our newsletter where we share best practice of how to support young people. sign up 3. Find out more Join us by reading and sharing our CreativeYOU report which shows how our work brings opportunities for creative expression and enables young people to explore their talent, regardless of background or circumstance. Download our Creative YOU report Sessions at The Batch are Back! We are delighted that South Gloucestershire Council is partially reopening The Batch Community Centre in Warmley to allow us to run much needed services for young people in the area. I'm just happy to have a this place back! – Young Person, age 15 Restoring Essential Youth Services “I'm just happy to have a this place back!”, commented one young person as they returned to much loved youth club The Batch on Monday 28th February 2023. The young people of Warmley have been without a local youth centre since October 2022 when the centre was forced to close after the previous operator, the Banjo Island Community and Sports Association (BICSA), handed back the keys. Since then, the council has undertaken repair work to the building and held discussions with select partner organisations who had indicated an interest in taking over the facilities. We are really pleased to be able to restore essential services for young people and keen to continue them as an important part of our work with the community when a new operator is found. During the temporary closure, we maintained some youth work in the community and offered some 1:2:1 support, but young people really miss their safe space at The Batch youth club. – Jack Fitzsimmons, Youth Work Manager, Creative Youth Network CYN have previously run open access youth work at the Youth Wing of The Batch, reaching hundreds of local young people. Now that facilities have been restored and improved, the council will facilitate a partial reopening so that these services can be restored. I am really pleased that, having done the much-needed work to restore and improve The Batch, we are now able to get Creative Youth Network back in to deliver activities for young people. We know how much they are valued by young people in the area. – Cllr Samuel Bromiley, Cabinet Member with responsibility for Children and Young, South Gloucestershire Council The Search for a Long Term Operator While the centre is open, a formal Expression of Interest (EOI) process will be underway to secure a new long-term operator for the venue. A new operator is needed to run the building for the community, including the café, as well as to provide space for the Youth Club run by Creative Youth Network. So far none of the local organisations approached have been able to take on the whole operation. South Gloucestershire Cabinet Member with responsibility for Children and Young People, Cllr Samuel Bromiley, said: “The next step is to find the right operator for the future, which will be able to offer stable management and put The Batch back at the heart of the community. This building is so much more than a café; it is a place to meet and a hub for many local sports teams and other groups. We are running a formal and transparent process to make sure we secure the right operators to help deliver these facilities.” The formal Expression of Interest process is now underway. The opportunity to manage The Batch has been advertised to charities, community organisations and other suitable groups who could take on the management role. This includes managing the community spaces, including the Youth Wing for organisations such as CYN, operating the food and drink facilities, as well as for private hire for local people to use. Potential operators have been able to visit the site and have received information from the council so they understand the costs and community-focused requirements of taking it on. The council will scrutinise potential operators’ business plans to ensure they can provide stable management for the benefit of the local community. It is expected that a decision will be taken in the coming months to appoint a new operator, based on these assessments. For more information about the EOI process, please visit: https://www.southglos.gov.uk/business/property-for-sale-or-rent or email [email protected] Youth Sessions will be running on Mondays and Fridays from 7-9pm. For more information about the services we'll be running, you can email: [email protected] The Batch – Find Out More Manage Cookie Preferences How can we help?