Tag: Award

Create receives Highly Commended Disability Impact Award at National Charity Today Awards 2026

Posted on October 14, 2026 by communications - News

Create receives Highly Commended Disability Impact Award at National Charity Today Awards 2026

We are delighted to announce that Create has received a Highly Commended Award in the Disability Impact Award category at the National Charity Today Awards 2026, recognising our work to make the creative arts accessible and inclusive for disabled children and adults.

The Disability Impact Award celebrates organisations and projects that empower disabled people, promoting accessibility, independence and inclusion. This recognition reflects the achievements of participants across four of Create’s programmes and the commitment of our professional artists, partners and funders who help make these opportunities possible.

CREATIVE ARTS PROGRAMMES SUPPORTING DISABLED CHILDREN AND ADULTS

Create was highly commended for our work across four programmes: creative:connection; creative:tandem; environment:matters; and our:stories.

During 2025/26, Create delivered 280 tailored, inclusive creative arts workshops with 555 participants through these programmes.

Working alongside our professional artists, participants explored different artforms, developed skills and confidence, expressed themselves and connected with others. Each project was designed around the needs and interests of the people taking part, ensuring they could participate in ways that worked for them.

Celebrating disabled participants’ creativity and achievements

An important part of Create’s work is providing opportunities for participants to share their creativity with wider audiences and take pride in what they have achieved.

In 2025, this included a creative:connection showcase at Manchester Central Library, where 53 disabled and non-disabled students from four schools in Manchester and Salford performed original music created alongside Create’s professional musicians during a week-long residency.

In Lewisham, participants on another creative:connection project contributed artwork to a bespoke smart car vehicle wrap. Their designs were displayed at CarFest South in August 2025 before touring London in November, bringing their creativity to audiences beyond the workshop setting.

Meanwhile, 36 disabled students taking part in our environment:matters programme in Liverpool explored the climate crisis through visual art. Their finished pieces were celebrated at a special red-carpet private view hosted by project funder Barnett Waddingham at its office.

These experiences offer participants opportunities not only to develop their creative skills, but also to see their work recognised and appreciated by others.

Making creativity accessible to everyone

At Create, we believe that everyone should have access to high-quality creative experiences, regardless of their circumstances or abilities.

Our programmes are developed in partnership with the organisations and settings we work with and tailored to participants’ individual needs and interests. Through activities including music, visual art, drama and other artforms, our professional artists create welcoming environments where participants can experiment, collaborate and express themselves.

Nicky Goulder MBE, Create’s Founding Chief Executive, said:

“Receiving a Highly Commended Award for the Disability Impact Award is a wonderful recognition of the work taking place across Create’s programmes. What makes this particularly meaningful is the incredible creativity, imagination and individuality we see from our participants every day. From performing original music to exhibiting artwork in public spaces, our participants are showing what can happen when barriers to participation are removed and everyone is given the opportunity to explore their potential. We’re delighted that their achievements have been recognised on a national stage.”

We are proud to receive this recognition alongside the many charities and organisations making a difference across the UK and extend our congratulations to all the winners at this year’s National Charity Today Awards.

People Need To Create.

With thanks to Barnett Waddingham, Bruce Wake Charitable Trust, Charles S French Charitable Trust, John Horniman’s Children’s Trust, London Freemasons’ Charity, Merchant Taylors’ Foundation, Octopus Energy Generation, The Simon Rivett-Carnac Trust, smart and The St Paul’s Schools Foundation (via Mercers’ Company) for funding these programmes.

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Create named finalist for Disability Impact Award at National Charity Today Awards 2026

Posted on September 10, 2026 by communications - News

Create named finalist for Disability Impact Award at National Charity Today Awards 2026

We are delighted to announce that Create has been named as a finalist for the Disability Impact Award at the National Charity Today Awards 2026.

The Disability Impact Award celebrates organisations and projects that have empowered individuals with disabilities, promoting accessibility, independence and inclusivity.

CREATIVE ARTS PROGRAMMES SUPPORTING DISABLED CHILDREN AND ADULTS

Our nomination recognises Create’s work with disabled children, young people and adults through four of our programmes: creative:connection; creative:tandem; environment:matters; and our:stories.

During 2025/26, we designed and delivered 280 high-quality, tailored, inclusive creative arts workshops with 555 participants through these programmes, creating opportunities for the participants to explore their creativity, develop skills and confidence, connect with others and express themselves, reducing isolation and enhancing wellbeing.

CELEBRATING DISABLED PARTICIPANTS’ CREATIVITY AND ACHIEVEMENTS

Central to our work is ensuring that participants not only have opportunities to be creative, but that their ideas, talents and achievements are seen, heard and celebrated.

In 2025, this included a creative:connection showcase at Manchester Central Library, where 53 disabled and non-disabled students from four schools in Manchester and Salford shared original music that they created with our professional musicians during a week-long residency.

Meanwhile, 36 disabled students taking part in our environment:matters programme in Liverpool had the opportunity to showcase their climate crisis-inspired visual artwork at a special red-carpet private view hosted by funder Barnett Waddingham at its office.

These moments provide valuable opportunities for participants to take pride in what they have achieved and for wider audiences to experience and celebrate their creativity and talents.

MAKING THE CREATIVE ARTS ACCESSIBLE AND INCLUSIVE

At Create, we believe that everyone should have access to high-quality creative experiences.

Our projects are carefully designed in partnership with the participants, organisations and settings we work with, carefully tailored to the needs and interests of each participant group. Through professional artist-led workshops, participants are given opportunities to experiment with different artforms, express themselves, work collaboratively and discover what they can achieve.

Nicky Goulder MBE, Create’s Founding Chief Executive, said:

“I’m thrilled that Create has been shortlisted for the Disability Impact Award. This recognition celebrates something that is fundamental to our work: ensuring disabled children and adults have access to high-quality creative experiences and opportunities for their creativity to be seen, heard and celebrated. I’m incredibly proud of our participants and everything they have achieved, and hugely grateful to our professional artists, staff, partners and funders who make this work possible.”

We look forward to joining other charities and organisations from across the UK at the National Charity Today Awards Gala Lunch this October. The awards’ finalist communications highlight the event as an opportunity to celebrate work taking place across the UK charity sector.

Congratulations to all this year’s finalists!

Nicky Goulder MBE, Founding Chief Executive

With thanks to Barnett Waddingham, Bruce Wake Charitable Trust, Charles S French Charitable Trust, John Horniman’s Children’s Trust, London Freemasons’ Charity, Merchant Taylors’ Foundation, Octopus Energy Generation, The Simon Rivett-Carnac Trust, smart and The St Paul’s Schools Foundation [via Mercers’ Company] for funding these programmes.

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Create shortlisted for two Children & Young People Now Awards

Posted on July 23, 2026 by communications - News

Create shortlisted for two Children & Young People Now Awards

We are delighted that Create has been shortlisted in two categories of the Children & Young People Now Awards 2026, recognising our work using the creative arts to empower children and young people facing disadvantage across the UK.

We have been shortlisted for:

The Arts and Culture Award for inspired:arts, our long-running programme empowering young carers.

The SEND Award for creative:connection, our programme tackling disability prejudice by bringing disabled and non-disabled young people together through the creative arts.

The Children & Young People Now Awards celebrate organisations making a meaningful difference to the lives of children, young people and families, and we are incredibly proud to see two of our programmes recognised.

Supporting young carers to create, connect and thrive

Shortlisted for The Arts and Culture Award, inspired:arts has been empowering young carers for 19 years, providing free creative arts opportunities that enable them to develop confidence, creativity and vital life skills.

Young carers often spend much of their time looking after family members, leaving little opportunity to focus on themselves. Through artist-led workshops in artforms including animation, dance, drama, music and visual art, inspired:arts gives young carers the chance to express themselves, build friendships and resilience and discover what they can achieve.

During 2025/26, we delivered 381 workshops with 575 young carers through partnerships with 20 young carer services across the UK. The impact was overwhelmingly positive, with 98% of participants saying their wellbeing improved, 98% feeling more connected to others, and 93% reporting increased confidence.

One young carer told us:

“I got to use my own ideas and express myself.”

Another reflected:

“The other young carers helped me when I struggled.”

Empowering disabled children and young people

Our creative:connection programme has been shortlisted for The SEND Award, recognising our work with disabled children and young people.

Every creative project is tailored to the needs of the children and young people taking part, working closely with schools, disability organisations and families to create inclusive, artist-led experiences where every participant can express themselves, develop new skills and build confidence.

In 2025/26, the programme delivered 208 workshops with 418 SEND children and young people across 21 schools, charities and day centres nationwide. Participants explored a wide range of creative activities while developing communication, teamwork and creative skills in supportive environments designed around their individual needs.

The programme’s impact was equally encouraging. 95% of participants said their wellbeing improved, 93% said their creativity and confidence increased, and 92% felt more connected to others.

As one participant put it:

“That was the most creative thing I’ve done in my entire life!”

Another said:

“These workshops are the highlight of my week!”

Celebrating the power of creativity

These two nominations recognise more than individual programmes. They celebrate the transformative role creativity can play in the lives of children and young people.

Whether supporting a young carer to find time for themselves or giving a disabled young person the opportunity to explore their creativity in an inclusive environment, our programmes are designed to enable every participant to feel heard, build confidence, develop new skills and connect with others.

We are incredibly grateful to the many funders, partner organisations, professional artists, volunteers and supporters who make this work possible, and to every child and young person who shares their creativity with us.

We look forward to celebrating alongside the other finalists at the Children & Young People Now award ceremony in November.

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Create and John Lyon’s Charity shortlisted for Charity Times Award

Posted on July 23, 2026 by communications - News

Create and John Lyon’s Charity shortlisted for Charity Times Award

We are delighted that Create and John Lyon’s Charity have been shortlisted for the 2026 Charity Times “Charity Collaboration of the Year” Award. This recognises a 13 year partnership bringing the life-enhancing power of the creative arts to children and young people in London.

Since 2013, Create and John Lyon’s Charity have worked together to expand access to high-quality creative arts opportunities for children and young people who might otherwise face barriers to taking part. Over the years, the partnership has grown in both scale and impact, supporting thousands of young people to build confidence, develop new skills and improve their wellbeing through professional artist-led creative projects.

During 2025/26 alone, the partnership reached 364 children and young people across the London boroughs of Barnet, Brent, Hammersmith & Fulham and Harrow through three flagship programmes: changing:minds, community:matters and inspired:arts.

Together, these programmes supported children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), children in care, young carers, disabled young people, and migrant and refugee children and young people, through a wide range of creative artforms, including animation, ceramics, dance, drama, filmmaking, jewellery, music, photography, sculpture, textiles and visual art.

Creativity changing lives

Across all three programmes, the impact of the partnership has been remarkable.

Participants consistently report improvements in their wellbeing, confidence, creativity, communication and teamwork, while partner organisations highlight the lasting value the projects bring to their own services.

Across the programmes:

96% of participants said their wellbeing improved.

96% felt more connected to others.

Partner organisations consistently reported that the projects strengthened and enriched their existing provision.

One young carer reflected:

“[The project] allowed me to speak out more.”

Another shared:

“I’ve made new friends and had new experiences.”

For many participants, these projects provided much more than an opportunity to be creative. They offered a space for young people to express themselves, connect with others and discover confidence in a supportive environment.

Strengthening communities

The partnership has also created lasting benefits for the organisations supporting these young people.

As part of community:matters in Brent Create delivered creative training for staff from the three partners organisations, equipping them with new creative skills and techniques to use with the young people they support, long after our project finished.

Meanwhile, the partnership enabled Create to establish inspired:arts in the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham, addressing a significant gap in provision by introducing dedicated creative arts opportunities for young carers in the borough for the first time.

Showcase events throughout the year brought together participants, families, carers and community partners to celebrate the young people’s impressive achievements, highlighting the confidence, creativity and skills developed.

Celebrating collaboration

The Charity Times Awards celebrate excellence across the charity sector, recognising organisations and partnerships making a meaningful difference to people’s lives.

Being shortlisted for “Charity Collaboration of the Year” is wonderful recognition of what can be achieved when organisations combine their expertise, shared values and commitment to creating opportunities for those who need them most.

We are incredibly grateful for our continued partnership with John Lyon’s Charity and our shared belief in the importance of ensuring every child and young person has access to the creative arts.

We look forward to celebrating alongside the other finalists at the Charity Times Awards on 23 September.

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CREATE SHORTLISTED FOR YOUNG CARERS AWARD IN 20TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR

Posted on August 8, 2023 by nikita - News

CREATE SHORTLISTED FOR YOUNG CARERS AWARD IN 20TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR

We’re delighted to have been shortlisted for the prestigious Children & Young People Now “Young Carers” Award.

The Young Carers Award is for the initiative that has done the most to support children, young people or young adults up to 25 who care for a family member or friend with an illness, disability, mental health problem or addiction. This includes support to meet carers’ educational, health, social and emotional needs; helping carers who have previously been unidentified by services; and working with families to reduce inappropriate levels of caring.

Create has worked with young carers since 2007, using the creative arts to enable these amazing children and young people to build skills and relationships, enhance confidence and wellbeing, and reduce isolation. Over the last few years, the need for respite for young carers has become much greater. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, 58% of young carers increased their caring time by at least 10 hours a week. Following the pandemic, the cost of living crisis has disproportionately affected young carers, with 56% saying their families are ‘always’ or ‘usually’ affected by the crisis.

We’re delighted that our work with young carers has been shortlisted for this award, including our vital change:matters programme. change:matters educates and upskills young carers across the UK about money and family finances, demystifying these topics by demonstrating key financial concepts through different creative artforms. The programme provides young and young adult carers with the space to understand and better navigate their finances and has been particularly crucial over the last year, given the current financial climate. A young carer who took part in our change:matters programme said: “The workshops have helped me learn the value of money. When you’re growing up, you don’t realise how much or how little money you have, or how it works in the real world.”

Ensuring our participants have a voice is at the heart of Create’s work. In March 2023, we partnered with Carers Trust for the third year to ensure that young carers’ voices were at the heart of Young Carers Action Day. We ran creative arts projects with young carers across the four nations and celebrated with an online showcase that highlighted their artwork on the theme of “Making Time for Young Carers”.

inspired:arts Scotland visual art banners — Young carers with their campaign banners created on YCAD 2023 visual arts project in Scotland

Following our visual art project with young carers from Lambeth being featured on Channel 4’s hit show, Grayson’s Art Club, their artwork was selected to feature in the exhibition at Midlands Art Centre, propelling the voices and talents of young carers to the nation! Seeing their monumental artwork displayed in the exhibition alongside work by so many other artists including Grayson and Philippa Perry themselves made the young carers feel rightly proud.

Artwork by young carers from Lambeth on display at Grayson's Art Club: The Exhibition at MAC Birmingham, November 2022 — Artwork by young carers from Lambeth on display at Grayson’s Art Club: The Exhibition at MAC Birmingham

These are just a few highlights from our work with young carers in the last year. Being shortlisted for this award to coincide with our important 20-year milestone is wonderful recognition of the commitment, passion, determination and drive of everyone who is involved in Create: our staff, our professional artists, our Trustees, our volunteers, our funding and community partners and – above all else – our young carers. The incredible children and adults who we work with continue to inspire and motivate me every day.

The Children & Young People Now Award Ceremony takes place on Thursday 23 November 2023 – we’ll let you know how we get on!

Nicky Goulder, Founding Chief Executive

Create chief executive wins Charity Times award for rising CEO star

Posted on October 11, 2021 by mike - News

nicky goulder wins 2014 charity times award

In October 2014, our Chief Executive Nicky Goulder was recognised with the prestigious Highly Commended award in the Charity Times Rising CEO Star category.

After co-founding Create in 2003, she was appointed to the new position of Chief Executive in December 2012. Since then, our income has increased by 53%, enabling more than 3,000 disdvantaged and vulnerable children and adults to take part in sustained, life-changing programmes rated successful by 98% of community partners.

The citation read:

“Nicky has led Create to its most successful year to date, directly as a result of her passion and drive to make society fairer, more caring and more inclusive. Her commitment to disadvantaged and vulnerable people has helped transform the lives of more than 27,000 participants.”

In nominating Nicky for the award, our Chairman Eddie Donaldson wrote:

“I believe that Nicky should be recognised as Charity Times Rising CEO Star because of her passion and dedication to transforming the lives of society’s most disadvantaged and vulnerable people. As Chairman, I have witnessed first-hand her drive to make Create a centre of excellence. Never complacent, she leads her team to deliver the best possible outcomes for Create’s participants and community partners. When we appointed Nicky as CEO, I knew she would bring her vast experience to the table to meet our expectations, drive the charity, deliver new and innovative programmes in the community and increase Create’s income and visibility through new initiatives. As I suspected, she has done exactly this, meeting and exceeding expectations with grace and flair.

“Our Trustees, staff, community partners and funders often comment on Nicky’s dedication, professionalism, and integrity to effect positive change. Her vision and determination to make society a better place permeate all her actions, making her an outstanding CEO. Her commitment to disadvantaged and vulnerable people has had a profound and lasting effect on her team and the lives of Create’s 27,478 participants to date, who in turn go out to change their communities. Her ambitious plans for the next three years will continue to impact the lives of individuals and communities into the future.”

In commenting on the award, Nicky said:

“I have the privilege of leading an incredible, dedicated team of staff and artists and, thanks to the transformational grant that we received from The Queen’s Trust last year, we are on target to double the reach of our work by 2016. This award feels like wonderful recognition for all we are achieving as a team to help transform the lives of disadvantaged and vulnerable children and adults through our carefully tailored creative arts programmes. I would like to thank our Chairman for nominating me, the judges for acknowledging our achievements and Lloyds Bank Foundation and The Rank Foundation for so generously supporting of my post.”

Charity Times Rising CEO Star award recognises “a chief executive who has demonstrated dedication, professionalism and integrity throughout their short career, and who has produced an identifiably profound effect on the sector through their work and management and shows great potential going forward”.

Create receives Highly Commended Disability Impact Award at National Charity Today Awards 2026

CREATIVE ARTS PROGRAMMES SUPPORTING DISABLED CHILDREN AND ADULTS

Celebrating disabled participants’ creativity and achievements

Making creativity accessible to everyone

DONATE TO CREATE

Create named finalist for Disability Impact Award at National Charity Today Awards 2026

CREATIVE ARTS PROGRAMMES SUPPORTING DISABLED CHILDREN AND ADULTS

CELEBRATING DISABLED PARTICIPANTS’ CREATIVITY AND ACHIEVEMENTS

MAKING THE CREATIVE ARTS ACCESSIBLE AND INCLUSIVE

DONATE TO CREATE

Create shortlisted for two Children & Young People Now Awards

Supporting young carers to create, connect and thrive

Empowering disabled children and young people

Celebrating the power of creativity

DONATE TO CREATE

Create and John Lyon’s Charity shortlisted for Charity Times Award

Creativity changing lives

Strengthening communities

Celebrating collaboration

DONATE TO CREATE

CREATE SHORTLISTED FOR YOUNG CARERS AWARD IN 20TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR

CREATE’S CHIEF EXECUTIVE IS CHARITY TIMES’S HIGHLY COMMENDED RISING CEO STAR