Alexandra Edinboro, Acting Head of Drama - Erith School, Bexley
Adaptability and Responsiveness
Alex was keen to maintain a space where students could share and celebrate their artistic talents after drama provisions were cut. Faced with the loss of the school musical, Alex worked closely with a key group of enthusiastic students to devise a whole-school, student-led arts event. Her focus was on ensuring that students felt empowered to make decisions and take responsibility for the project. The students chose to create a talent show and older pupils were buddied up with younger ones to ensure that everyone who wanted to be involved, could be. Alex leveraged help from the local community who decorated the school hall complete with red carpet and flowers. Aside from the success of the final event, Alex reflected on the importance of reminding students they have the potential to create change. The process had given the student agency and a unique opportunity to develop “golden transferable skills”; resilience, trust, teamwork, independent learning. She believed they were more confident in their abilities as a result.
Clare Kubilius and Kate Broadbent, Assistant Head Teachers - Woodmansterne School, Lambeth
Engagement and Inspiration
Clare and Kate’s project was inspired by their school’s move to a new building. Working throughout the year to engage and inspire other teachers, they are now set to review the timetable and run a whole class, cross-curricular pilot project via curriculum redesign. By motivating and collaborating with other members of staff, Clare and Kate were able to raise awareness and gather further support for the project. Momentum was also created during STEAM week when Clare and Kate supported a whole-school science and arts project with an additional CPD element. The positive evaluation from staff and pupils provided a useful opportunity to advocate for and promote cross-curricular working.
Aminah Adeyemi, Art and Photography Teacher - Eastbury Community School, Barking and Dagenham
Collaboration
Aminah recognised that many of the small cultural events that happened throughout the school year were not receiving the attention or profile they deserved, and as a result were under threat of cancellation or defunding. In consultation with her students, Aminah oversaw the creation of a new end-of-year arts festival called Eastbury Summer Fest, bringing together an art exhibition, a concert and style show. By encouraging students to take ownership of the project and engaging other departments, the project had a much bigger profile and impact than previous arts events as well as creating a positive “buzz” about the school in the local community. The project's success had encouraged other departments to come forward and volunteer to take part next year.
Rachel Board, Head of Drama, Acland Burghley School, Camden
Independence and Cultural Awareness
Rachel, a secondary school drama teacher, wanted to plant the seeds of cultural leadership in her students by helping her Year 7 class become experts on the arts offerings in their community. Students researched and contacted artists, venues and organisations and in some cases arranged talks and tasters at the school. She felt that the project, which will continue beyond the CLC programme, not only built awareness among her students but also built confidence, resourcefulness and knowledge about professional opportunities in the arts sector.
Davina Wakelin, Deputy Head - Julian’s Primary School, Lambeth
Outdoor Learning
Davina noticed that her school grounds were rich in natural resources but were being underused by staff as a learning tool. The aim of her project was to encourage teachers to deliver art classes using this space and improve the children’s outdoor learning experience. Encouraging Early Years and Foundation teachers to engage with the project, Davina was able to build support and awareness of the benefits of learning outdoors with a small, focused group of staff. They ultimately became advocates for this way of working and encouraged and supported other staff members to experiment and explore this approach. Teachers were further supported by working with a professional artist who was able to guide and inspire both children and staff.
Lucy Stiles, Year 3 Phase Leader and Arts Coordinator, Hatcham Temple Grove Free School, Lewisham
Leveraging Parent Expertise
The aim of Lucy’s project was to develop a strategic and formalised Creative Community Network that would enable parents and teachers to liaise on creative projects. Initial consultations with parents revealed a particularly diverse range of skills, especially in arts and media, and many were happy to engage further with the school. Follow-up discussions revealed that parents wanted specific requests rather than more generalised ‘call-outs’. As a result, and in agreement with parents, Lucy created a detailed database outlining expertise, areas of interest, and parents’ availability. The database was shared with other members of staff and Lucy will review how effective this resource is over the next academic year.
