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 Youth Participation: What’s the point? “Participation” and “Have your say” are often phrases that are used across youth services, but young people often wonder ‘what is the point?’ and what does ‘participation’ even mean? Participation means meaningfully ensuring services are relevant for young people today, by including them in service design and delivery. To an organisation, it could be simply consulting with young people about a small decision, completing surveys and even right up to volunteers, youth committee groups and young trustees, resulting in quality youth services that have young people at the heart. However, some could argue that the young people who engage in participation reap most of the benefits, which to name a few can include: Increased confidence and self esteem Sense of connectedness, and feeling of being valued, which can contribute to positive mental health Gaining skills for CV (including references for future employment) Meeting new people and making friends – reducing loneliness and isolation Access to training and support Learning about how youth services work and progressing into a career in youth work The South Gloucestershire Youth Partnership (SGYP), includes youth organisations across South Glos: Creative Youth Network, Southern Brooks, Diversity Trust, Krunch South West and Wickwar Youth Centre who have come together through a passion and determination for delivering quality youth services for young people in South Gloucestershire. Even though I like to think of myself as still being young and across the partnership we have over 30 years’ experience of youth work, we need young people to help us ensure we are providing a quality youth service that is relevant for young people today. To make sure we do this in a meaningful way, we have created a new Youth Ambassador volunteer role, who I cannot wait to start working with. Interested in getting involved? I’d love to hear from you – 07747271919 / [email protected] – Facebook – Hannah Cyn Do you work in a youth organisation? How do you make sure that youth participation is meaningful? Manage Cookie Preferences How can we help?