We have been working in partnership with British Land since 2003, the year Create was founded. Four years later, in 2007, we designed and delivered our first project with young carers – a vulnerable group of children who often experience bullying, isolation and mental ill health – in Westminster, the borough in which British Land’s head office is located, which we called art:space.

Since then, enabled by our ongoing relationship with British Land, we’ve worked with more than 1,000 young carers in Bath, Milton Keynes, Swindon, Winchester and the London boroughs of Camden, Hackney, Kingston, Southwark and Westminster. art:space offers them the opportunity to develop confidence, creative and social skills, and build relationships with other young carers while having a vital – and fun – break from their caring responsibilities.

Supported by committed, skilled volunteers from British Land, each art:space project brings young carers together for creative workshops during school holidays throughout the year. Often located at British Land sites, and using the spectacular artwork and architecture to inspire creative activities, our professional artists work with the young people to explore a range of art forms. These include music, drama, dance, film making, animation, sculpture, costume design, jewellery-making, painting and word play. Final performances or exhibitions at the end of each project give the young carers the chance to work collaboratively to share their work with a wider audience and build their confidence.

Joanne Hammond, Community Investment Executive at British Land, said: “The art:space programme is a wonderful example of how we connect with our local communities. Working with Create, we are delighted to give vulnerable young carers who are local to our properties a break from their caring responsibilities and the chance to explore their creativity, boost their confidence and build supportive relationships with their peers. Create carefully designs each art:space project to meet the needs of local young carers and fulfil our objectives, making a positive local difference. Our volunteers and visitors are inspired and impressed by the creativity of the young carers, enlivening our properties with their original artwork and performances, supported by Create’s professional artists.”

To celebrate ten years of art:space, we’ve collected some of our favourite quotes from participants over the years.

Meet Cara

Cara (15) took part in art:space Winchester

“It’s difficult to get away from home and do creative things. The time it takes to travel to do projects means that I’m leaving my mum alone and she needs my help to care for my sister. My sister has the learning age of a 4-6 year old although she’s actually 20 so I play with her, keep her happy, help her get changed and give her medicine. It’s a lot for my mum to deal with on her own. At school we don’t do things like film-making but at home I do photography so this project helped me take the skills that I have and develop them into something new. Being creative makes me really happy. It gives me a chance to get away from the stress, even it’s just for a little while. These workshops have enabled me to have fun with my friends and learn something new together. When it’s stressful at home, I come and do this three-day workshop and it takes my mind off it.”

Meet Erin

Erin (10) took part in art:space Westminster

“I feel really proud of my role creating the animation. The bit that I made got used by everyone, so that made me happy. I learnt so much in these workshops: how to set up a camera; how to set up a tripod; make animations; everything really! I have a quick temper sometimes so I was proud that I was able to work well in a group. I took a step back and learnt that it’s good to listen to other people’s ideas. Also, other people at school have been asking about the workshops and what we’ve been doing in them, so that felt good. I’ve felt a bit more confident too, because I used to have only one friend in the school but now I’m on the way to having more friends.”

Meet Owen

Owen (16) took part in art:space Bath

“My mum developed a back problem when I was about 12 years old. It progressed until a doctor told her she couldn’t work anymore and she now suffers from depression and constant pain. My brother and I were left to go through the teen years alone and it was tough, I have only just realised that. It was really nice to explore making music because I’ve never had the chance to try it out before. Being in this environment with musicians who are friendly and have a laugh with you really encouraged me to try new things and expand my skills and knowledge. Creativity helps me to think positively, just getting on with music and doing something I like doing improves my mind-set. I felt a lot of pride when making the soundtrack; pride and a feeling of accomplishment in saying, ‘Yeah, I did that.’”

Cara, Erin and Owen articulate why art:space is such an important project. From taking young carers’ minds off what can be an overwhelming family situation to building creative and social skills that they can use at home and at school, art:space exemplifies how much the opportunity to be creative benefits the most disadvantaged and vulnerable in our society. We are deeply grateful to British Land for our long-term partnership and for enabling us to empower the lives of more than 1,000 young carers over the past 10 years.

Each year, we collaborate with international law-firm, Reed Smith to enable adult carers at Newham Carers Network to benefit from relaxing, life-enhancing creative arts workshops through our creative:release project.

Reed Smith is based in the City of London, a stone’s throw from the London Borough of Newham, and dedicated staff give up their time to work alongside our professional artists and the carers.

This year, Andy – a Record Clerk at Reed Smith – took part in visual arts workshops with the carers. Together with our visual artist Maru Rojas, they experimented with a range of challenging and stimulating artistic techniques. In one week, Andy and the carers attached pieces of charcoal to sticks of bamboo, testing their imaginations (and dexterity!) as they created an underwater scene with their makeshift artistic tools. In another week, they recycled old images and photographs, upcycling them by painting over the top and sewing thread across the images. Using snapshots of the past, they worked together to create new memories to treasure.

Here, Andy describes his experience of working as a volunteer at creative:release.

“Firstly I’d like to say how engaging and skilled I found Create’s project team, including Maru Rojas – the artist who led the workshop – and Ce’Ce at Newham Carers Network. They were all very encouraging to me and the carers throughout the project.

“I found volunteering at the workshops a really enriching experience, as it took me to an unfamiliar part of London and gave me the opportunity to socialise with people I wouldn’t otherwise get to meet.

“My job with Reed Smith is as a records clerk, which is fairly repetitive and screen based, so the workshops were an excellent “recharge”, helping to boost my enthusiasm level back at the office.

“I believe the arts are very important and a social good that should be accessible to all. We need all the obvious stuff: rule of law, reliable public transport, utilities, roads, schools, hospitals etc. but art, when you think about it, is one of the things that make life worth living.

“I hope I have contributed in some small way to the amazing success of the programme.”

Afe Komolafe is Community Manager at Paddington Central, which hosts our art:space programme in Westminster.

art:space is a multi-arts programme for young carers, funded by British Land, which provides the opportunity for young carers to develop creative thinking through art forms including film, animation and dance. The programme enables them meet other young carers and develop social skills, gain self-confidence and self-esteem, and have fun.

Afe told us about why the staff at Paddington Central love getting involved in the art:space programme:

“Paddington Central prides itself on being a valued part of our local community. As such, we endeavour to play an active part by supporting local initiatives. Volunteering is just one way in which we achieve this. Paddington Central delivers on British Land’s Local Charter, which sets out how British Land builds trust and supports successful, integrated local communities and how it develops skills and opportunities to help local people and businesses grow.

“It was a pleasure hosting the art:space programme with young carers. Our staff found the volunteering stimulating.”

Afe Komolafe

“Create does very important work supporting disadvantaged and vulnerable young people helping transform lives using creative arts. It was a pleasure hosting the art:space programme with young carers from Hallfield Primary School at Paddington Central and our staff found the volunteering stimulating. A highlight was watching the children explore the public space and being fascinated by the buildings. Also, the sessions were delivered from the executive suite and the children got to experience being in a work environment with some commenting they would like to work in Paddington Central when they grow up.

“Every year we run a free film festival to engage the local community and our occupiers in enlivening the space. Last year it was a privilege to show the premier of two films made by the art:space participants as part of the festival. Keep an eye on our website for information about what we have in store at this year’s film festival.”

This article is from 2016.

Neil Carter is Centre Manager at Whiteley Shopping Centre, which has hosted our art:space Winchester programme since 2014. art:space is a multi-arts programme, funded by British Land, which provides the opportunity for young carers to develop creative thinking through art forms including film, animation and dance.

The programme enables them meet other young carers and develop social skills, gain self-confidence and self-esteem, and have fun. Neil told us why everyone at Whiteley Shopping Centre loves getting involved in art:space.

“Community is at the heart of everything we do at Whiteley Shopping Centre as we are the heart of the community. We do not see community involvement as an additional task to be performed; it is simply a part of how we manage the Centre each and every day.

“The projects we have undertaken with Create are central to British Land’s Community Charter as they help develop skills that will help young people in their education and careers. We have volunteers at every workshop and all take a fully active part, from dance choreography to animation technology.

“Our relationship with Winchester & District Young Carers (WDYC) began two years ago. At first, many of our team didn’t understand the term ‘young carer’. As we got to know the young carers, one of our team realised that he had been a young carer himself without knowing the title. He had no support and now fully understands the vital role WDYC performs in the community. He then went on to identify a young carer living very close to our Centre and arranged for WDYC to get involved to offer support.

“We have seen one young carer in particular develop over the last two years. When we first met him he was one of the more challenging attendees with some big life choices ahead of him. We arranged for him to join us for a week of work experience and have had regular contact through the workshops. At the last workshop I had a long chat with him and discovered he has a part time job, is doing well in school and planning for further education – what a turnaround!

“Each of our volunteers has learnt something new by volunteering, and not just new skills in the creative arts! Many, myself included, have learnt how to engage with a younger generation and to understand what interests them and how they utilise social media. This has helped us in our day jobs and changed the way we implement marketing strategies at Whiteley. The workshops become a real talking point and boosted the morale and confidence of all who attend.

“Create is professional, organised but most of all, as the name suggests, creative. It is very much a good organisation to volunteer with and we have been very impressed by its professional artists. They interact with the young carers on their level and make the workshops really enjoyable for all who take part.”