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WHY THE ARTS MATTER!

JUST IMAGINE!

Just imagine what a difference we could make if creativity, the arts and heritage experiences were part of an entitlement for all children and young people to give them the skills and attributes they need to thrive and succeed at school and at work and support their health and well-being from birth to adulthood!

EXPLORE LIBRARIES: MORE MAGIC!

We know that the EXPLORE LIBRARIES are as vital parts of the communities we serve and as important as schools, parks and the emergency services! They are wonderful places and they are not just about the books!! Increasingly they are about collections and connections; learning places, cultural centres, creative places, health&well-being centres, young people’s places at the heart of the communities we serve!

Explore Labs urges all York people to challenge their imagination. Under the strapline, “You don’t know what exciting ideas are inside your head until you go there: your dreams start here”, this award winning Arts Council England-funded community arts project coordinated by Explore York, runs activities at York Explore Library and its network of libraries throughout the communities we serve. 

This wonderful video show you a bit about the magic of Explore! https://youtu.be/fku3tog5_M8

EXPLORE LIBRARIES... RELEASING THE MAGIC!

We know that singing releases endorphins and makes you happy... Explore Libraries have a brilliant programme providing opportunities for people to sing in a relaxed, welcoming environment and enjoy a cuppa and a friendly chat! 'Cuppa and a Chorus' sessions are about enjoying making music with a group of friendly people! You do not need to read music or have any previous experience of singing, just a desire to meet new like-minded people in a welcoming environment and to find your own voice. The sessions are led by experienced community choir leader, Chris Bartram, who guides everyone gently through a variety of different music from around the world. This wonderful video gives you a taste of what is on offer!! https://youtu.be/Y75YBPp31L8

SKILLS AND CHARACTER MATTERS!

Involvement with creativity and the arts is crucial to developing the skills that matter in life...resilience, communication, teamwork, problem solving, imagination, self-expression in young people. These are the skills that will fuel the success of the UK’s creative industries, and that will result in the next generation of creative talent across the country.

LIBRARIES MATTER!

ITS A START: Multi-million-pound culture boost for children in schools!

School Standards Minister Nick Gibb announced a multi-million-pound package on Friday 3 January alongside a manifesto commitment to offer an ‘arts premium’ to secondary schools to allow young people to learn creative skills and widen their horizons. Asa usual music gets the biggest share of the funding and we need much more for creativity and the arts and to develop that critical skill set which sets children and young people up to thrive and succeed at school, at work and in life!!

The curriculum schemes that will receive a total of £85 million for 2020/21 are as follows:

• Music Education Hubs
• In Harmony
• National Youth Music Organisations (NYMOs) and Music for Youth; and
• Cultural education (Heritage Schools, BFI Film Academy, Museums and Schools, ACE Bridge Network, National Youth Dance Company, Saturday Art and Design Clubs).

SKILLS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE!

A colleague sent me  link to the The Centre for Youth Impact and Local Government Association document, 'A Framework of Outcomes for Young People 2.0' which affirms the work we had been doing in Sheffield with the Cutlers Company to develop programmes to help young people develop the skills required to thrive and succeed at school, in work and in life!!

The Catalyst Framework of Outcomes 2012 took as its starting point the emerging evidence that social and emotional skills play a key part in young people’s ability to make successful transitions to adulthood and achieve positive life outcomes including educational attainment, employment, and good health. It was an attempt to make clear connections between what are often considered to be the short-termor ‘soft’ outcomes of provision for young people and the longer-term impacts. The framework was well-received by the youth sector initially, and many practitioners started to use it as the basis for defining and measuring the outcomes they hoped to achieve with young people, assisted by the matrix of measurement tools included with the framework. However, the Catalyst Framework ultimately failed to make as great an impact on the sector as had been hoped, emerging as it did into an environment of severe reductions in resources available for youth work and other forms of developmental work with young people. As well as reducing the actual offer available to young people, budget reductions led to a significant decline in leadership roles within the youth sector, both locally and nationally. As a result, the Catalyst Framework lacked advocates in senior roles in local authorities and national organisations, and has lost traction in the last five years.

THE ARTS MATTER!

I have been reading some research in the British Medical Journal. 'The art of life and death: 14 year follow-up analyses of associations between arts engagement and mortality in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing' which looked at impact of the arts on longevity. The study is very clear about the importance of arts engagement... "it could be linked to longevity by alleviating chronic stress and depression, and providing emotional, cognitive, and social coping resources that support biological regulatory systems and behavioural choices. Arts engagement is also known to enhance social capital, which builds individual and collective resources, and to reduce loneliness, which is associated with mortality. Arts engagement can support cognitive reserve, and promotes empathy, social perception, and emotional intelligence, which are all linked to a greater chance of survival. Arts engagement could help to reduce sedentary behaviours, which are well established predictors of cardiovascular health and immune function, and might also reduce risk taking behaviours. Arts engagement is linked to a greater sense of purpose in life, which is itself associated with better immune function and healthier behaviours. Further, creativity and imagination, which are an intrinsic part of artistic engagement, have been linked to increased chance of survival across the evolution of our species. So there is a strong theoretical rationale that underlies the hypothesis that arts engagement could be linked to people’s chance of survival."

This study explored whether arts engagement could help us live longer, happier lives. "We analysed the longitudinal relation between receptive arts engagement and mortality across a 14 year follow-up period in a nationally representative sample of adults aged 50 and older. Results showed a dose-response relation: risk of dying at any point during the follow-up period among people who engaged with cultural activities on an infrequent basis (once or twice a year) was 14% lower than in those with no engagement; for those who engaged on a frequent basis (every few months or more), the risk was 31% lower. The association was independent of all identified confounders, was found across all major causes of death, and was robust to a wide range of sensitivity analyses."

HOW TO LIVE LONG AND PROSPER!

Another blooming Christmas and as I have said for a long time we simply need stay connected with friends and colleagues and volunteer and give to others whenever and whatever we can. Interestingly, I was re-reading some research gathered on more than 1,500 children who were about 10 years old when they were first studied in 1921. This study has been used to create the most comprehensive longitudinal evidence for how to live long and prosper.

CLIFTON GREEN PRIMARY SCHOOL, 'FEVERED SLEEP' AND 'THE INSTITUTE OF EVERYTHING'!

I visited Clifton Green Primary School this morning. I love visiting primary schools who are doing such important work in some of the most interesting communities we have here in York. The team are very obviously 'releasing a very special Clifton Green magic'! I really enjoyed briefly looking around the school and hearing about their partnership with 'Fevered Sleep' and the work they have been doing with the children and the school team as part of 'The Institute of Everything'.

NEW EEF GUIDE

“It doesn’t matter how great an educational idea or intervention is in principle; what really matters is how it manifests itself in the day-to-day work of people in schools.”

The NEW EEF Guidance Report 'Putting Evidence to Work' is well worth reading