Arts Award at Creative Makers

Creative Makers is an Arts Award accredited centre, enabling children and young people to gain nationally recognised awards and qualifications while taking part in creative activities they genuinely enjoy.

One of the things we particularly value about Arts Award is its flexibility. Rather than every young person having to follow the same programme, Arts Award can be built around their individual interests. Their journey might involve art, photography, textiles, digital media, graphics, filmmaking, music technology, DJing or a combination of different creative disciplines.

Arts Award can be incorporated across almost all of our provision, including school outreach, alternative provision, one-to-one mentoring and selected after-school programmes. Young people can choose whether they would like their Creative Makers experience to contribute towards an Arts Award; it does not have to become the focus of their sessions.

We currently deliver Arts Award Discover and Explore, which provide accessible and achievable ways for young people to recognise their creative development, explore different art forms, learn about artists and creative professionals, and record and celebrate what they have achieved.

For young people working with Creative Makers over a longer period, we can also explore progression to Bronze, Silver or Gold Arts Award. These higher levels provide opportunities for more sustained creative development, greater independence and leadership, with Bronze, Silver and Gold recognised as regulated qualifications.

This makes Arts Award particularly valuable within our specialist and alternative provision. A young person who may have found conventional academic learning difficult can build a portfolio around something that genuinely motivates them and have their creativity, progress and achievement formally recognised.

Whether a young person is painting, creating a photographic series, designing textiles, producing digital artwork or learning to DJ, Arts Award gives us a flexible framework through which their individual creative journey can be recognised and celebrated.