#iwill Youth Environmental Arts

In 2019 Qube worked with the Strengthening Families team at the Marches School (largest secondary school in the area) to offer six young people facing various challenges the opportunity to engage with learning outside of the classroom as landscape volunteers, and in making/design outdoors with artists.

This 10 week pilot project (funded by The Community Foundation for Staffordshire) worked with a range of partners and professional artists including, Shropshire Wild Team, Designs in Mind, Environmental Artist Tim Pugh, Nant Mawr Visitor Centre and Nesscliffe Hills/Cliffe Countryside Heritage site. This opportunity allowed participants to achieve something in an environment away from their usual situation at school, home or both. The programme complimented the School’s ‘No Worries’ therapy programme giving students an opportunity to benefit from a ‘hands-on’ approach working with creative professionals outside of the classroom (working in the natural environment or offsite artist’s studio).

There was a very positive response to the programme, both from the young people and their teachers back at school. The young people fully engaged in the programme, learnt new skills e.g. screenprinting to make flags, and developed their social and communication skills.

‘I believe that the participants are benefitting from immersing themselves in an environment that has so many positive visual aspects and interests’ – Tim Pugh (Environmental Artist)