We were delighted to hold a #COLLABORATEforCREATIVITY event at this Year’s London Design Festival.

4pm: THE CREATIVITY CRISIs

DEBATE AND DISCUSSION

Is a #CreativityCrisis brewing in our schools and soon to impact the economy and wider society. Why? How? And what can parents, teachers and other creative carers (like you?) do about it? Is art the answer? We heard provocations from a panel and your thoughts and concerns.

Our panel included:

• Nick Corston - Co-Founder and CEO STEAM Co.

• Jonty Archibald - Principal, Global Academy

• Tony Ryan - CEO, The Design and Technology Association

STEAM Co.?

STEAM Co. was co-founded 8 years ago by a group of parents, teachers, artists and other carers in a primary school in Paddington to Power Communities to Inspire their Children with Creativity, by providing the Inspiration and Resources to help them run STEAM Co. Days - mini Creativity Festivals in schools.

3 years ago one of the dads gave his career up to roll it out to every school in the UK via launch events and UK tours.

Everywhere we’ve gone, from North Cornwall to Northumbria, London to Liverpool, we’ve had a fantastic response in State and Independent Schools, though many schools say they wouldn’t know where to start, can’t afford to get us in or don’t have the community skills and support they need.

We need to help them as we’re passionate that creativity is a crucial skill our kids will need.

It’s under pressure in our schools, in fact we’re worried we’re facing a creativity crisis.

We’re connecting school communities to make a difference.

Do you care? Will you help?

WHOEVER YOU ARE, SIGN UP NOW

Whether you’re creative company like the one in the film below that is keen to help run a STEAM Co. Day or a School that would love to have a STEAM Co. Day but wouldn’t know where to start or just can’t afford it, get in touch on the form here.

• Creative Person - while we’re keen to hear from creative people there’s something everyone can do to help inspire a child on a STEAM Co. Day. Do sign up here to help or to hear from us.

• Creative Company - would your company send some staff to help run a STEAM Co. Day, would you pay for one (£750 or so) or would you sponsor STEAM Co. (We need to get more of our Drop Trucks on the road). Sign up here. We’ll be in touch.

• Parent/Carer - would you like to find out how you can run a STEAM Co. Day in your school? Sign up now

• School teacher/leader - if you’d like to connect with and engage your school community, then get in touch. Even if you don’t have any budget we may be able to connect you with a company that will help. Sign up now

You may be a creative keen to help on a STEAM Co. Day or know one of the UK’s world class creatives that might be interested in spending a few hours as an Inspirator, developing an activity pack that can be delivered on STEAM CO. Days by school communities across the countries 31,113 schools.

WHY?

Inspired by a call to arms by HRH Prince of Wales/Duke of Cornwall* at his milestone 'Arts For Schools' conference (see film below) this campaign is a call to arms to creative people and creative companies to work with us using our STEAM Co. Day format in schools across the country.

With drastically fewer young people choosing GCSE’s in arts and creative subjects and teaching training applications down yet booming creative industries that need these skills, something’s not right.

Some point to educational policy such as the EBacc that prioritise non creative subjects, others say we need to educate parents and teachers. Some even think we need to rethink education itself. Any ideas yourself?

YOU?

You may be worried as a parent yourself, or just care. Care about our children, creativity and all our futures so we want to hear from you, especially if you don't have kids yet or they've been and gone or you aren't having them at all.

This a chance work with with schools in all sorts of communities, some where parents or other carers can't always be called on.

See films below that give you a snapshot of what we do and need to do and another of a typical STEAM Co. Day run by 'Your Favourite Story' a digital product launch agency in Shoreditch who generously hosted this event.

Who?

We heard from some wonderful speakers and guests, one who travelled form Bradford. Full write up and films follow.

Speakers/collaborators included:

• Mark Earls - Creative Guru and ‘Like Malcolm Gladwell on Speed"‘ according to The Guardian (whatever that means)

• Tristram Shepard - Design Technology Education Guru and Author

• Rock Galpin - Accalaimed Designer and lecturer at Central St Martin’s art collage

• Jade Wilson - Young Digital Designer with no kids yet.

• Tom Morley - Artist, Co-founder Scritti Politti and STEAM Co. Inspirator

• Pip Jamieson - Creative Connector at The Dot and recently seen on BBC News discussing creative education

• Andrew Bernard - Enterprise Director and National Careers Week

• Mulumba Tshikuka - Painter, Writer and STEAM Co. Inspirator

(We were mortified too by the poor diversity on our panel and hope you will forgive us but it was a real struggle to tick every box. We reached out far and wide and had some female superstars in our sights and inboxes but it wasn't to be given other commitments at this busy time/short notice but hope you’ll agree this was a formidable lineup, given the circumstances)

#ARTCONNECTS 2019 Festival

We’re delighted to announce the second #ARTCONNECTS19 Festival of Creative Schools, Work and Lives.

See this snippet of last year’s performance by a Science Teacher and Soul Singer, Winnie Greer.

So sign up here to be sure you get the updates and 3 minute video blogs of last years event as we release them.

Collaboration?

Take a look at the film below which will give you an idea of how we help communities to collaborate with schools and see how a creative agency - Your Favourite Story - from Shoreditch took a day off to run one of our STEAM Co. Days in Raynham Primary, a school in a very challenged community nearby in North London after hearing their head teacher say that “Creativity is a Luxury” at an event we held with Barclays in Canary Wharf.

Have a look at what they do with cows on the roof at their studio in London’s Shoreditch Creative Quarter when they aren’t lending it to creative community enterprises.

COULDN’t come?

Pop your details in the form below and we’ll keep you posted on how the evening went and where we go from here.