Prisoners on Create projects win three prized Koestler Awards
I am very pleased to announce that prisoners who created radio plays as part of Create’s Inside Change project in 2022/23 have won three prestigious Koestler Awards.
The prizes are awarded by Koestler Arts, a charity dedicated to awarding, exhibiting and selling artwork by prisoners, detainees and secure patients.
Inside Change enables prisoners to explore financial literacy through radio drama. Working with our professional drama artist and sound engineer in a series of high-quality creative arts workshops, they write, perform and record a radio play centred around personal finance issues. This helps them to develop their financial capability, which aids transition back into society on release. Where possible, plays are broadcast on National Prison Radio so that other prisoners can hear them.
“This project has definitely been one of the more productive things I’ve done since I’ve been in jail. I feel like I’ve come away from this with actual knowledge that will help me in the future.”
Harrison, Inside Change Particpant
Out of the Woodwork, a play written and recorded by prisoners during summer 2022 with our drama and sound artists, was given a highly-coveted Bronze Performance Award by Koestler Arts. Two other performances, Crop Circle and Tiger Castle, produced during autumn and winter 2022, were respectively highly commended and commended by the judges.
At Create, we believe that everyone should have access to creativity. The creative arts have a unique ability to improve our wellbeing, confidence, and mental health. Creativity enables us to express ourselves and imagine new possibilities. And on our Inside Change project, prisoners learn crucial new skills to help them on release.
We are delighted to see the artwork created by prisoners recognised with these Koestler Awards, which again proves how vital and important this work is.
As ever, I am hugely grateful to the funders, artists and Create staff team for making these innovative projects possible, and to the prisons that welcome us through their doors.
Vast majority of Brits think creativity is important to wellbeing, new study finds
93% of Brits think having the space and freedom to be creative is important to their wellbeing, according to a new survey by Create and bakery brand Jacksons of Yorkshire.
The survey, which looks at the nation’s attitudes to the arts and creativity, found that two thirds (68%) of Brits consider themselves to be art lovers, with 20% of the 2,000 polled admitting that they love exploring their creative side through art, music and drama. Despite being an art loving nation, however, 84% wish they were more artistic with one in three (30%) keen to develop their creative side further, but unsure how to go about it.
The research marks the launch of the Feeding Creativity campaign, a partnership between Jacksons and Create promoting the importance of the creative arts. The campaign will be featured on three million loaves of bread across the UK, supporting our creative arts programmes that connect, empower, inspire and upskill people who don’t normally get the chance to be creative.
The positive impact of creativity on personal wellbeing is evident from the survey, with people reporting a variety of positive emotions. The study found that 50% of us feel happy and 49% relaxed when being creative, with 31% feeling content and 30% free.
The survey also found that 44% of Brits consider Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh the greatest artwork of all time. Banksy’s Girl with Balloon came in close second place with 42% of the vote, followed by French sculptor Augustine Rodin’s most famous work, The Thinker, in third place.
Our CEO Nicky Goulder said:
“It is clear from the research that Brits not only love great art but also understand the value of creativity.”
“People need to create. Creativity impacts wellbeing, emotional and mental health. It builds skills, brings joy and reduces isolation. It allows us to think differently, to express ourselves, and to be heard. It raises aspirations and – according to industry leaders including the World Economic Forum – is a core skill for business.
“There is significant evidence for the role that arts and cultural engagement play in improving health throughout life. It is shocking to think that many don’t have the opportunity to explore their creativity and create their own masterpieces whether it be through writing, painting, drawing or the performing arts.
“Too many are denied the vital benefits provided by the creative arts, and it is often the most disadvantaged children and adults in society who are the most excluded.
“We need to ensure that everyone has access to the life-enriching power of creativity.”
Despite 31% agreeing that creativity is a crucial skill in life and 25% claiming to be at their happiest when they are being creative, one in four (26%) say they haven’t had the opportunity to do anything in the creative arts space since they left school.
A third (30%) say they simply don’t have the imagination, while 28% don’t have the time to explore their creative side. A lack of inspiration (28%) and money (27%) are also barriers when it comes to being more imaginative.
And the average Brit undertakes a creative pursuit – such as writing, drawing, photography or dancing – three times a week.
Create partners with bakery brand Jacksons for nationwide “Feeding Creativity” campaign
First-of-its-kind campaign launches this week on three million loaves of bread across the UK, supporting Create’s mission to promote the importance of creativity and a series of creative arts projects to enhance the lives of young carers.
As the UK’s leading charity empowering lives, reducing isolation and enhancing wellbeing through the creative arts, we are delighted to be partnering with Jacksons of Yorkshire for a multi-channel campaign called ‘Feeding Creativity’. The campaign highlights the essential role creativity plays in the lives of children and young people, and the value of widening access to the creative arts to people of all ages.
“Feeding Creativity” campaign loaves, in shops from 26 July
Building on years of supporting children’s breakfast clubs in its hometown of Hull, bakery brand Jacksons is using its largest marketing campaign to date to support the arts. Three million promotional loaves will land across all major retailers and independents from 26 July until the end of November. Through purchasing a loaf, brand fans can win an art-themed family trip to London, art packs for their local school and more.
Year one of the ‘Feeding Creativity’ partnership with Create is focusing on children’s art and young carers. Jacksons is sponsoring five of our creative arts projects with young carers, led by our professional artists, with support from Jacksons’ employees who will volunteer on site.
Our Founding CEO, Nicky Goulder commented:
“2023 marks Create’s 20th anniversary, and what better way to celebrate than to partner with a household brand to raise awareness of our work on a national scale.”
“Our young carers programme felt like a fitting way to kick off the ‘Feeding Creativity’ campaign. There are an estimated 800,000 children and young people who are carers in this country. Many of them are marginalised, miss school and are twice as likely to report anxiety than the general population. We’re committed to giving these young people time out from their responsibilities to participate in high quality creative experiences to express themselves, build skills and boost their confidence and wellbeing. We can’t wait to work with Jacksons, welcome the team to our sessions and begin a long-standing partnership with the brand.”
Head of marketing at Jacksons, Dan Reeves said: “For many years we have supported schools here in Hull with bread donations for breakfast clubs, and are working with the charity Chefs in Schools to help improve lunches at schools across in the city, but we felt we could do even more by partnering with Create.”
The campaign, the first of its kind for Create, and the largest Jacksons of Yorkshire has embarked on since the brand launched in 2012, is being supported with PR, social media activity, and experiential roadshows across the summer.
Twenty years ago today, on Monday 7 July 2003, Create was “born” at my dining room table.
In so many ways, the world is vastly different now from the one in which Create emerged and there are certainly challenges and opportunities that I couldn’t have imagined back then.
But my vision on starting the charity – of a world in which everyone has access to the educational, social and life-enriching benefits of the creative arts – has remained unchanged. So too has the charity’s mission: of using the creative arts to connect, empower, inspire and upskill society’s most disadvantaged and vulnerable people, raising aspirations, building self-esteem, reducing isolation and enhancing wellbeing (though we may articulate this slightly differently today than we did 20 years ago!).
Create’s first ever project, Shake an Egg, took place on the charity’s 10th day of existence, 16 July 2003. Two open-air music workshops in central London brought together vulnerable young people with members of the business community; and infants from a nursery school with children from a primary school. Led by four of our professional musicians, the project was interactive and fun, giving the participants access to collaborative music making using body percussion and egg shakers. One of the children told us: “It was enjoyable and funmaking up rhythms in two groups and adding something in ourselves”; while a teacher commented: “The children had a great deal of fun shaking the eggs and making rhythms; and the teachers learned about creative musical activities.”
Looking back, I can see so many of the central tenets of Create’s projects today in that very first one: giving vulnerable participants access to inspirational professional artists; encouraging and incorporating participants’ ideas into the creative process; bringing different groups of participants together; skill-building; collaboration; enhancing confidence; upskilling partner organisation staff; and – of course – having fun.
In the independent organisational evaluation that we commissioned from Partnership First last year, a review of 19 years of Create including a survey and in-depth interviews with key stakeholders, 92% of respondents said Create fully met or exceeded its aim to connect, empower and inspire participants; while 100% of funders rated Create’s impact as excellent or good. This may explain why British Land, which funded that first Shake an Egg project back in 2003 is still one of our key funding partners 20 years later.
There have been so many highlights over the years that it’s hard to know which to share in a retrospective piece such as this.
Storybook illustration by one of the fathers in prison who took part in our Inside Stories project
Having a passion for the power of storytelling to connect people, and wonderful memories from my own childhood of the magical, topical stories that my own Dad used to tell us on long car journeys, a project that is particularly close to my heart is Inside Stories. At the core of this project is connecting fathers in prison with their children, a key component in reducing the likelihood of reoffending. Under the guidance of our professional artists, fathers work in pairs to write, record and illustrate original stories for their children, which they then set to music as a group.
I challenge anyone to attend the special family visit in prison, when the dads share their stories and music with their children, and not be deeply touched by the vulnerability of the men, and the tenderness of their stories. As one mother told us: “Kyra misses her father greatly. He always used to tell her stories at bedtime, and words cannot describe how much having this story written by her father and being able to hear his voice has helped.” That the work created on this – and our other prison projects – has been recognised with 104 Koestler Awards since 2012 is the icing on the cake.
Young carers from across London take part in the Lord Mayor’s Show
Another very special moment, back in November 2018, was giving a group of 30 young carers from across London the opportunity to take part in the Lord Mayor’s Show and have their voices heard. Before the show, they worked with our professional artist to create mobile sculptures and banners inspired by the theme ‘Shaping Tomorrow’s City Today’. Their fantastical creations, which imagined eco-friendly buildings and celebrated sustainability, technology and creativity, formed a walking float. One young carer reflected: “I liked meeting different young carers from across London. My favourite moment was seeing the Lord Mayor and hearing my parents cheer for me. Being in the Show made me feel proud of myself, happy and appreciated.”
Two central tenets have been there at the heart of our work at Create from the beginning.
The first of these is Relationships: with our inspirational participants and partner organisations; with the incredible professional artists who deliver our projects supported by our team of Project Managers; with the wide range of dedicated funders without whom none of our work would be possible; and with our talented Create People: Patrons, Trustees, staff and volunteers.
The second tenet is Creativity. Because People Need to Create. Creativity impacts wellbeing, emotional and mental health. It builds skills, brings joy and reduces isolation. It allows us to think differently, to express ourselves, and to be heard. It enables us to learn about ourselves and others in new ways. It inspires, empowers and raises aspirations and, according to industry leaders including the World Economic Forum, it is a core skill for business.
Twenty years ago, people needed to create. Today, more than ever, people need to create. During COVID lockdown, people turned to creative hobbies to help them cope with stress, isolation, anxiety and – for many – time on their hands. Creative-thinking also enabled organisations and individuals the world-over to stay connected and find new ways to work. Here at Create, we launched Create Live! within two weeks, pivoting to a Zoom delivery mechanism that enabled us to take 921 creative workshops to our participants in their homes that reduced isolation, built skills and enhanced wellbeing.
I am proud of the passion, commitment, drive and energy that our incredible staff team has shown over two decades. I am inspired by our pool of inspirational professional artists who have delivered 13,319 workshops across the UK that have enriched and enhanced the lives of 43,678 disadvantaged and vulnerable people. I am delighted that year after year, 99% of our partner organisations have rated their Create programme “successful overall”. And I am humbled that our work has been recognised with 120 awards since 2012, including Charity of the Year (2020) and Digital Transformation of the Year (2021).
Above all, I am thankful to the incredible children and adults that we work with, who inspire and motivate me every day.
20 YEARS OF CREATE
Watch our 20th anniversary retrospective film, looking back over 20 years of sparking creativity.
Create CEO Nicky Goulder wins “Arts Innovator” Award
It is fitting that, as we celebrate 20 years of Create, our Founding CEO Nicky Goulder has won a woman&home Amazing Women Award. The awards celebrate women who have made a real difference to our world: pushing boundaries, saving lives and shining a light in their fields.
Celebrated as the ‘Arts Innovator’, this award recognises the positive impact Create has had over the past 20 years and Nicky’s role in making that a reality. Nicky founded Create in 2003, and has overseen its growth to become the UK’s leading charity empowering lives, reducing isolation and enhancing wellbeing through the creative arts.
Asked about what winning the award means to her, Nicky said:
It feels very special to have 20 years of our work at Create validated in this way. As founding chief executive, I recognise that at least part of that success is down to me, which makes me feel very proud!
Nicky Goulder, Founding CEO of Create
You can read the whole article from woman&home magazine below:
Captivating exhibition gives voice to unpaid carers from Edinburgh and Glasgow
A remarkable photography exhibition that celebrates the talent of unpaid adult carers is taking place in Edinburgh from Thursday 15 June to Sunday 18 June 2023, with the launch event on Thursday 15 June 2023.
Photograph by one of the carers taking part in creative:voices
The exhibition features captivating photographs taken by adult carers who attend Care for Carers Edinburgh and Glasgow East End Community Carers. It is a celebration of their participation in creative:voices, a multi-artform programme that enables adult carers to take a break from their caring responsibilities. The programme was designed and delivered by Create, the UK’s leading creative arts charity, and aims to empower and enhance the wellbeing of carers by providing them with an outlet for self-expression.
The project has been run online since the pandemic and participants, who became friends through taking part in creative sessions together for several years, are only now able to meet for the first time. Through various artforms the programme enables carers to discover new skills and connect with others who share similar experiences.
Why does it matter?
One in eight adults in the UK is a carer. Carers provide unpaid care for a family member or friend who is ill, frail, disabled or has mental health or addiction problems. Many are unable to take a break from their caring responsibilities and 42% say that their personal relationships, social lives and leisure time have been restricted. 81% of carers feel lonely or isolated as a result of their caring role. 72% of carers say they have suffered stress or depression as a result of caring.
creative:voices was designed to alleviate feelings of isolation and enhance wellbeing, enriching carers’ sense of belonging in their community and increasing their confidence in themselves and their abilities.
What have participants said?
Susie found that the project gave her both new skills and confidence:
“I can use the skills that I’ve learnt in the [project] to take a picture of a flower or bird. It makes me feel better and happier. I think it’s important for us to make the time to educate ourselves. I have learnt that I can do this. I learnt that I’ve got more confidence, and I feel more empowered that I can do photography. It was great to hear the other carers admiring my photos. It was just so pleasing to hear that someone actually likes what I did.”
Lachlan said creative:voices helped bring him out of his shell:
“I’ve always found it difficult to talk to people. I’m a bit of an introvert. This project with Create totally put me at ease. I found it very easy to talk to the other people. I just loved every minute of it. Each week I’d be apprehensive, and then within five minutes I forgot about any inhibitions and just sat down and enjoyed myself. The project has taught me to challenge myself and try things that I’m not comfortable with.”
The project is supported by First Sentier Investors and the exhibition is held at Care for Carers Edinburgh. The event promises to be an enriching experience for all attendees and serves as a reminder that the creative arts have the ability to give a voice to those who may often go unheard.
Create’s Founding Chief Executive, Nicky Goulder, commented: “I am excited and delighted that the talents of this dedicated group of unpaid adult carers are being showcased at this exhibition in Edinburgh. We designed this partnership project during lockdown to provide a creative outlet for adult carers from Edinburgh and Glasgow, helping to reduce isolation and enhance wellbeing. These amazing individuals give so much to their loved ones and being able to bring them together in person after so many years is going to be moving and inspiring. It’s wonderful that such strong friendships have developed. Our thanks go to First Sentier Investors for making this project possible.”
