Creative YOU

Creativity 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

 

CREATIVE SHOWCASES

Every young person should have the opportunity to express themselves creatively. This is how young people we work with unlock new skills and improve their wellbeing. In our showcases, we celebrate this every day creativity and the potential it unlocks.

  • Humans of Hanham

    An immersive series of photographs guaranteed to transport you back to your youth club years.
    Read more

  • Good Grief | Creative Courses Showcase

    Bringing together over 80 young people aged 11-18 from diverse backgrounds every term, our Creative Courses explore difficult topics.

    Using creativity, young people are able to express themselves, build resilience and develop relationships based on trust.     Read more

  • Rooted | Emerging Artist Commission

    We commission young, emerging artists to make their own work. Supported by our creative team, Deepraj Singh worked with young people from our youth clubs on Rooted - a dance performance telling the story of experiencing isolation. Read more

CREATIVE FUTURES TODAY

These are the success stories of our alumni. Coming from seldom represented backgrounds, they've stepped into the creative industries with our support. Many of them are now making a difference by passing on their knowledge and helping others.

  • Sarah Cook

    "Creative Youth Network was the catalyst that started everything, giving me a professional career in creative industries. I wouldn’t have had the confidence to exhibit my work without their support and encouragement." Read more

  • Leeza Awojobi

    “I think part of being human is being creative. To use it as a point of connection with other people. If I didn’t have that I think I would be less human.” Read more

  • Millie Downie-Wood & Izzie Clench

    "It was the accessibility of Creative Youth Network that has helped me the most. It’s allowed me to have conversations with professionals who have made a difference to Bristol. That makes me feel my work is valid and worth listening to." Read more

  • Thomas Meadley

    “The arts have brought me back to life. Having had cancer and mental health issues, being able to create through the arts was vital to keeping me going.” Read more

  • Deepraj Singh

    "I’ve learnt a lot through having a safe space to learn more about my own practice and still go on as a performer. That’s something that is great about Creative Youth Network, they allow people like me to see our progression and give us a stake in what they’re doing." Read more

CREATIVITY LIVE

The latest updates from our talented young artists from diverse backgrounds. Exhibitions, performances and work in progress from young people who are building what the creative and cultural industries of tomorrow should look like.

  • Confinement Consequences - Joe Hill

    Now that we're more isolated than we ever have been, how can we still create together? Come and make music with Joe Hill. In this real-time music crafting experiment, Joe is asking you questions and composing based on your answers. Read more

  • Brook Tate

    Brook Tate is a Bristol based young artist whose work captures people and characters in a fun and imaginative way, finding stories behind the faces he sees. In this exhibition, we are sharing different facets of his work, giving you a glimpse into his multifaceted practice.  Read more

  • Good Grief | Creative Courses Showcase

    Bringing together over 80 young people aged 11-18 from diverse backgrounds every term, our Creative Courses explore difficult topics.

    Using creativity, young people are able to express themselves, build resilience and develop relationships based on trust.     Read more

CREATIVE YOU

Blogs from our experts in inclusive production. Thoughts and new ideas from young people whose voices are so rarely heard. Guest blogs from industry partners and policy experts.