Its a bit life changing really...

The Forge is an arts organisation that is courageous, contemporary and collaborative, delivering quality and high impact participatory arts programmes for and with children, young people, families and communities. We work across art forms and sectors with creative professionals and other partners with the aim of changing the lives of the children and young people we reach.

What do we do?
The Forge pushes boundaries regionally, nationally and internationally. We have developed a strong track record of developing imaginative and creative processes to stimulate knowledge and enjoyment for people and organisations to understand, access and apply their creativity. In our creative programmes we: form collaborative and sustainable partnerships build relationships with organisations and individuals remove barriers to participation achieve diversity throughout our work provide opportunities for young peoples voice project manage, curate, commission and facilitate offer training provision for professionals across sectors nurture and develop artists

Why does this matter?

The Forge brings about real change to children and young peoples lives by igniting a creative explosion in every setting we work in, enabling individual journeys to be explored.
During our projects, young people will: achieve personal goals develop empathy towards others improve their creativity, critical thinking and communication skills analyse situations and explore solutions develop greater self-expression, self esteem and confidence work collaboratively to enhance teamwork and leadership skills gain the ability to value their own opinion and personal contribution

The arts enable, empower, liberate and heal...and thats what The Forge is about.
Margaret Ferrie, Chief Inspector, Sunderland City Council

How do we make it happen?

We offer various programmes and projects, from short term residencies to long term interventions. Our approach offers participants skills and opportunities through a creative and developmental process of: Preparation; by building the team and mutual trust Organisation; by refining thinking and agreeing targets Origination; through creative response Sharing; by celebrating Reflection and renewal; by reviewing experiences and making plans for future Evaluation is central to our work to ensure improvement in the future.

We really value making long term partnerships with individuals and organisations across a wide range of sectors. We have strength in working with schools, youth services, voluntary, community and heritage settings. The Forge is able to effectively and efficiently respond to various commissioning and procurement frameworks.

Making Connections
A major feature of our work is working alongside local authorities to meet their priorities and respond to the needs of individual schools.
Sector: Childrens Services and Cultural Services Case study: Connections membership Young people: Children in schools and nurseries, aged 0 16 years old Partners: Sunderland City Council, Durham County Council, Artists and Schools Art forms: All At its heart, our creative membership scheme is simple, flexible and sustainable. For many schools and partners, joining Connections will be the starting point of their journey to discover a new creative way of working and learning. Our reoccurring scheme is one which our members can access as and when they need to. Whether they want to dip a toe in or jump in with both feet, we make sure that we are accessible, responsive and supportive at every level of their development process.

We created a poem... it was extraordinary. We even made a finished product, I didnt think we would and when we closed our eyes and heard our poem, it felt real!
Pupil, Shotton Hall Junior School

Connections offers schools the opportunity to work with high quality artists who have been specially selected. We would definitely recommend Connections the process of registering is easy and it was great when we applied for Artsmark.
Teacher, Langley Park Primary School

What is typically on offer?

subsidised membership of a large scale creative scheme strategic development of the arts across the curriculum planning and delivery of an artist in residence support and guidance for specific initiatives access to a competitive grant scheme to commission and develop creative projects an increased profile in delivering good practice arts and creativity projects subscription to termly e-newsletters access to resources events and professional development opportunities access to a directory of high quality artists certificate of membership contribution to the Every Child Matters (ECM) outcomes

80%

of Connections schools tell us that their membership delivers against the following ECM outcomes: enjoying and achieving, being healthy, staying safe and making a positive contribution.

In a typical year:
Approx. 80 schools join the scheme At least 50% of schools receive support to assist them with specific initiatives e.g. Artsmark 15 artists will deliver 140 workshop days in school Over 5,000 children participate per year

Identity and Aspirations

Fostering partnerships with a range of youth service providers enables us to achieve shared targets. We work with a range of youth settings, both centre based and detached young people, ensuring that professional development opportunities are available for those working with them.
By focusing on interesting and relevant arts activities for young people, our work is developed and created specifically to their needs and aspirations, and we make sure it can be shared with the wider community leading to extended dialogue, engagement and inclusion.

Every young person in this project has developed in their own way, it has been an exceptional experience for them seeing them direct and lead their films has really promoted their confidence and self esteem, they have had to be really committed and work hard to achieve these results!!!
Youth Worker, Durham County Council

Sector: Youth Services and Cultural Services Case study: ID09 & DreamTV Young people: Children and young people in youth settings, aged 12 17 years old Partners: Durham County Council, (Cultural Services and Positive Activities for Young People), Arpeggio Films, sessional artists and Derwentside youth groups Art forms: Dance, Drama, Film, Photography, Visual Arts (graffiti) and Animation

ID09 & DreamTV

The Forge was commissioned to deliver a strategic creative programme in partnership with Durham Youth Service with the view to increasing the skills, self esteem and confidence of young people and their youth workers. We investigated and developed replicable creative models for youth settings by establishing measurable objectives and clear frameworks. Through this process we fostered strong partnerships with youth workers in Derwentside. ID09 and DreamTV aimed to explore the theme of identity and aspiration. By using young peoples feedback ID09 developed into a range of taster workshops, this was followed by DreamTV, a longer term project facilitated by Arpeggio Films.

DreamTV enabled young people to explore what identity and aspiration actually meant, it covered such a broad range of topics from friendship to appearance; personalities to careers. The partnership and dedication between us, The Forge, youth workers and their young people was paramount to the projects success, ensuring the resulting DVD spoke effectively to its intended audience.
Will Sadler, Arpeggio Films

Our approach and creative methodology ensured ownership and a youth-led developed project. Young people were provided with the environment, support, guidance and tools to proceed in a creative and fulfilling way. They chose to produce a film, by creatively investigating issues within identity and aspiration. This interactive DVD can be used by youth workers to explore similar issues creatively. All young people worked towards gaining an accreditation in the Bronze Arts Award during this process.

Going National
We have built up a reputation for delivering programmes that have an artistic and social impact on those who experience them - whether its children, young people, educators or communities. This has been instrumental for The Forge being commissioned to deliver a number of government initiatives and engaging outside the region in debate about work at a national and international level. Arts Award
The Forge prides itself in nurturing ambitious young people and that is why we support the development and growth of Arts Award in the region. We are playing an important role in this as a training provider and a recognised Arts Award Welcome Centre. Arts Award is a nationally recognised qualification for 1125s accredited by Trinity Guildhall and run in partnership with Arts Council England.

Very informative, with a good clear presentation... helpful practical exercises with a supportive attitude.
Training participant about The Forge trainer

We implement Arts Award into our creative programmes and prepare key professionals to work with children and young people by guiding their Arts Award journey effectively. It recognises how young people develop as artists and arts leaders through assessment of their Arts Award portfolio demonstrating their progress throughout an arts project.

Youth Dance England

This exciting dance initiative champions and promotes dance for children and young people. The Forge leads this work in both Sunderland and Durham, working with local providers and strategic partners in each area to develop provision. Our role is to identify dance opportunities and increase participation for young people who have an interest in dance.

Cultural Hubs & Metamorphosis

County Durham was chosen as one of only three areas in the country to take part in an exciting three year initiative called Cultural Hubs. The ethos behind this was for all young people to have the right to access a full and cultural life where they are consumers and creators of this culture. A legacy of this was the Metamorphosis programme.
As the organisation selected to manage, develop and deliver Cultural Hubs within the region, The Forge engaged with schools, cultural organisations and artists to bring the project partnerships to life. Sectors: Formal Education/Heritage/ Libraries, Leisure & Culture Case study: Cassop Primary School (Cultural Hubs & Metamorphosis) Young people: Children in school aged 5 11 years old Partners: Jane Arnfield, Dance City, Tin Arts, The Sage Gateshead, Royal Geographical Society, BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, The Literary & Philosophical Society, Durham Record Office, Seven Stories, the Centre for Childrens Books Art forms: Theatre, Dance, Film, Visual Arts, Storytelling, Music, Creative Writing & Poetry

A unique journey
Over three years Cassop Primary School explored many art forms and concepts linking to its curriculum by forming partnerships with a range of cultural institutions. Their life-changing journey began when a troupe of South African dancers visited to explore the concept of freedom through dance. Forming a long-lasting partnership with artist Jane Arnfield was crucial to their development, enabling the school to embrace a broad cultural offer. This led to exciting projects, such as From Freezer to Fridge to Home... an ambitious theatrical lecture focusing on the environment, which the children confidently delivered to an invited audience at the Royal Geographical Society in London.

Metamorphosis

I certainly couldnt have achieved what I have without The Forges guidance...and they have guided me every step of the way.
Jacqui Holloway, Teacher, St Johns Catholic School and Sixth Form Centre

1,300+
children and young people participated in a total of 8 projects

Everything that weve done in the school has been absolutely amazing... Its an experience Ill never forget.
Young Person, Cassop Primary School

They also recorded a soundscape at The Sage Gateshead, inspired from a twinned school in China and furthered cultural partnerships including Around the World with Dance City and the Poetry Roadshow with Seven Stories, the Centre for Childrens Books. Finally during Metamorphosis Cassop and Coal brought the history of their village to life through storytelling, live music and dance, leading to a performance piece of promenade theatre involving Cassop children, ex-miners and other members of the local community. Cultural Hubs

15,430

opportunities for children and young people to access a broad cultural offer in Durham

1,043

adult and wider community participants.

45 creative projects 1,803 creative sessions 6,281 creative opportunities

Closer communities
Our strength in partnership working enables us to develop creative projects with a range of organisations, all working at different levels of experience through the arts. The Forge is able to respond innovatively and effectively to other sector priorities ranging from health to regeneration and sports to heritage.

Sector: Communities and Regeneration Case study: My City Young people: Children in communities aged 7 16 years old Partners: Sunderland City Council, Arpeggio Films, Gentoo Sunderland, City of Sunderland schools Art form: Film

My City
How do you go about reducing litter and graffiti; and encourage children and young people to consider the impact of their actions on the world they live in? Working in partnership with Sunderland City Council and funded by the Safer and Stronger Communities Fund, The Forge was commissioned to develop a creative project with children and young people investigating the impact we have as citizens on the community and environment we live in. By bringing together children and young people with artists they produced scripts, short films, and a photography exhibition. They used drama, visual art and creative writing to produce an interactive DVD, entitled My City. Every school in Sunderland now owns a copy and it is widely enjoyed by young people and teachers in the classroom. Its creation clearly demonstrates how Local Area Agreement outcomes can be achieved through a partnership approach and how we can support Local Authorities and other organisations with a remit for strengthening communities.

1 ,445

young people participated

80%

of children and young people said they would like to use My City as part of lessons in school

85%

of children and young people rated the DVD "Good", "Very Good" or "Excellent"

Working internationally
We are increasingly becoming global citizens and the arts is a fantastic way to find a common language. Creating and developing long term strategic partnerships with organisations and artists in other parts of the world to explore cultures, share experiences and, learn from each others practice is a growing part of our programme.
Our international work is a two way process of sharing skills and developing expertise. We can learn much from international models of working and their possible applications in a UK context. We have established relationships with a number of partners including the Swallows Partnership in South Africa, Ensemble Creative in Vietnam and Hua Dan in China. Sector: Global arts and education practice Case study: Thumbsup! Young people: All ages and all settings Partners: Ensemble Creative Vietnam, The Swallows Project South Africa, Hua Dan China

My relationship with The Forge is very important. It has opened many doors to new international partnerships and has helped me start new conversations about the value and meaning of arts participation here in Asia and back in the UK.
Paul Zetter, Ensemble Creative, Vietnam

Thumbsup!
Creating links between the UK and South East Asia, the Thumbsup! project focuses on children, participation, exchange and creativity. Working with artist Paul Zetter, who is based in Vietnam and runs our partner organisation Ensemble Creative, we are developing a web based project with the aim of connecting young people from around the world. The Forge and Ensemble Creative is a collaboration of two organisations with cutting edge experience and skills in running creative participatory child centred projects in the UK and internationally. Our aim is to build on our established links to make this a unique, international initiative that enables children to share their lives online with each other. This will grow into a valuable world resource on childrens views.

Work with us
Contact us to find out about our work. The Forge, Stanley Education Centre, King Edward VIII Terrace, Shield Row, Stanley, DH9 0HQ 01207 284 515 / enquiries@intheforge.com / www.intheforge.com

The Forge was established in 2000 and has strong relationships with local authority partners, working strategically regionally and nationally. A Limited Company in England and Wales no. 4027621 Registered Charity no. 1086471 Design: Solution Group Photography: George Bosnyak, Rachel Clarke, Cheryl Gallagher, Tony Griffiths, Fiona Melvin, Holly Eve Watson, Paul Zetter and project participants. Copy: Jeannie Adams, Cheryl Gallagher and The Forge