Element Goes Back to School

In 2018, we became a delivery partner of West London Zone, a brilliant charity working across primary and secondary schools in (you guessed it) West London, to support students in lots of different, tailored ways. We run after school creative projects with Key Stage 3 students who, across one term, try their hand at painting, collaging, creative writing, photography, performance and crafting. With stretched schools making heartbreaking decisions to cut their creative arts education, we believe that providing students with a space to create, express themselves, and artistically experiment is more important than ever. Our schools projects focus on developing students’ ability to problem solve, regulate their emotions, and achieve their goals. Not only are these crucial skills for school, but also for successfully navigating the wonders and complexities of life. 

Ash, our wonderful Board member and former Element participant, recently created a case study for Element (with Will from Very Telling, a great new company telling stories about organisations and their work). In it, she talks about making a collage in one of the Element sessions:

I remember this collage I was working on, where I went through magazines and newspapers, cutting out words that stood out. Mine ended up being about me, the things I felt, and what was going on for me at the time. It sounds cringey talking about it, but I got so much peace from seeing it all on paper, and not just having it all in my head for once.

Ash’s observation perfectly encapsulates why we think creativity is important. If this kind of practice is able to start in school, then we are equipping young people with the tools to problem-solve, to reflect, and to think ambitiously and creatively about the future.  

All the students we have worked with on our schools projects have shown heaps of creativity, expressed in unique and impressive ways. Here are just a few examples of the artwork that has been created. If you’d like to find out more about this strand of Element’s work, read all about it here!