A Nottingham based youth project has been sharing their latest plans and refurbishments aimed at keeping kids creative.
Young people working with the Circle of Light programme were awarded £27,780 from People’s Health Trust using money raised by Health Lottery East Midlands to support their self-directed creative production studio which plans to release an album and a special podcast in time for Mental Health Day on 10 October.
The Podcast, Between You and Me , stretches across many different topics and ideas. Contributors will release a special series of podcast covering different aspects of physical and mental wellbeing throughout mental health day.
They will also share their latest album, with awareness raised for not only their own charity, but for the plight of those living with mental health issues across Nottinghamshire.
The 18-month project, which was featured on BBC’s Inside Out series, enables young people aged 16 -25 from Nottingham who have experienced issues with mental health to attend workshops to create content for a monthly podcast which is designed to connect community members of different ages, backgrounds, and ethnicities.
The idea has come from young people who wanted to create their own podcasts after attending a masterclass on radio and podcasts during lockdown and they lead all aspects of the project.
The newly refurbished creative studio which includes recording, production and broadcast equipment is completely driven by the young people who use it.
Internal training and mentorship means that strategy and production are led by a hierarchy of volunteers and part-time staff, most of whom were members of the Circle of Light group for years.
During the pandemic, these youth leaders utilised video conferencing to keep the music and creativity of the group alive.
Tricia Gardiner, Project Coordinator, said: “Most of the young people here have experienced challenges and barriers in their own way. They are all from different backgrounds and have different things to give.
“They young people have designed this project, not adults who think that they know what young people want.
“Everything is free, so it’s up to them to maintain it. They assign themselves roles based on their own abilities and have delivered phenomenal results.
Another album is already in the works. Plans are in the works for these creative pursuits to be assessed by qualification bodies in a community, rather than educational setting. This means the work done by volunteers can count towards a level 4 diploma (the equivalent of first year of a degree) creating lifelong opportunities.
Managing Director of the Health Lottery, Martin Ellice, said: “We have loved seeing the amazing work by Offshoots in Nottingham and hope they continue to go from strength to strength.”
