The Creative Studio – Nunney

Specialist Creative Alternative Provision

The Creative Studio in Nunney, Somerset offers a calm, nurturing and highly creative alternative to the traditional classroom for young people from Key Stage 2 through to Key Stage 5. Working in very small groups or through one-to-one mentoring, we provide a supportive environment where each young person can develop their confidence, creativity and engagement with education at a pace that works for them.

Our approach is child-centred, flexible and project-based. Young people are encouraged to explore their own interests and develop individual creative pathways using a broad range of media, including fine art, drawing and painting, textiles, photography, digital imagery, graphics, mixed media and other contemporary creative practices. Projects can combine several disciplines, allowing pupils to experiment, discover their strengths and develop ideas in a way that feels purposeful rather than prescriptive.

For some young people, the focus is primarily holistic. Creative practice can provide a safe way to communicate, regulate, build relationships and experience success, particularly for pupils who have become anxious about, disengaged from or overwhelmed by education. Our practitioners work alongside the young person, using their interests as the starting point for developing confidence, independence, resilience and a positive relationship with learning.

For pupils who prefer working individually, the Studio can also provide one-to-one creative mentoring. Sessions can be built around visual arts or extend into music technology, digital music-making and DJing, giving young people another route through which to express themselves, develop practical skills and connect with an adult through a shared creative interest.

Creative Learning with Meaningful Outcomes

Provision can be entirely personalised and holistic, but it can also provide a pathway towards recognised educational outcomes and qualifications.

Young people can work towards Arts Award, with their individual interests forming the basis of their creative journey. Arts Award is particularly well suited to our approach because it can encompass a wide range of art forms—including visual arts, fashion, film and music—and recognises individual creative development rather than requiring every learner to follow the same artistic pathway. Explore, Bronze, Silver and Gold are regulated qualifications, with different levels available as young people progress.

For pupils already working towards GCSE or A-Level Art, Photography or Textiles, provision can instead be designed to complement their school's course. Our specialist practitioners can provide additional time, tuition and guidance with practical work, experimentation, artist research, developing ideas, photography shoots, portfolios and sustained projects. We can work collaboratively with the commissioning school so that off-site provision supports rather than competes with the qualification pathway the pupil is already following.

The Studio can therefore look very different for different young people. One pupil may spend the day developing a photography project; another may be sewing and constructing a textile piece; another might combine illustration, digital imagery and graphics; while another may be developing confidence through DJing and music technology.

What connects them is our belief that creative education should be ambitious without being rigid. We meet young people where they are, discover what motivates them and use creativity to provide a pathway towards confidence, engagement, achievement and, where appropriate, recognised qualifications.

Small groups • One-to-one mentoring • KS2–KS5 • SEND & EHCP provision • Arts Award • GCSE & A-Level support • Art • Photography • Textiles • Digital & Graphics • Music Technology • DJing