The Big Adventure

The Big Adventure (TBA) is an exploration into the impact of music and creative art sessions on some of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged young people in Suffolk.

Since April 2010 it has worked with: -
* 2 First Base PRUs and a Nurture Group for children aged 5 - 8
* 2 PRUs for young people aged 8 - 13
* 2 Special Schools

During that time it has: -
* Engaged with 117 young people between the ages of 4 and 18
* Delivered 183 sessions – that’s over 300 hours of high quality music/art sessions
* Trained 19 creative practitioners in conjunction with First Base staff
* Developed three distinct models of working with the young people, i.e. music, combined arts & music, and Soundbeams
* Established a bank of appropriate instruments
* Held a review and reflection event for staff involved in the project
* DEMONSTRATED THE VALUE OF THIS APPROACH TO WORKING WITH THESE YOUNG PEOPLE

TBA has actively encouraged and sought feedback throughout the project, from staff and practitioners alike. Feedback during the period January to March 2011 includes: -

* [Through the music/dance workshops] the children have developed resilience which will help with their return to mainstream school.
* A young boy (ADHD) had never displayed such concentration until he started playing the drums. We wish we’d thought about this before – drumming helps him expend a lot of energy but in a focused, concentrated way.
* The Big Adventure has helped us find skills and abilities the schools weren’t aware of.
First Base staff

* The experience has been nothing but positive – the children engage with the sessions and the staff also enjoy them.
PRU Staff
* It (TBA) makes such a difference.
* Some pupils really practised specific movements and others a range of movements. This alone is a great achievement for these pupils whose mobility is severely restricted and who have to work really hard to make controlled and purposeful movement.
* The session were always based around the needs, talents and preference of the pupils involved and this together with the expertise of all of the adults is what has made it such a brilliant experience for all concerned.
* There are very few opportunities for people with profound and complex needs – The Big Adventure has shown us another way of working with them and opened up all sorts of possibilities.
Special School Staff

* The Big Adventure has been a very positive experience for our pupils and they look forward to their weekly sessions.
* The pupils recognised their own individual contributions (in song writing) and were proud of them.
* The pupils have been motivated to join in and learn and even those who sometimes find such situations challenging due to a range of factors … have been keen to participate
* The Big Adventure has enhanced the music provision at the school and given pupils access to instruments that are both exciting and unfamiliar.

Special School Staff

* The Big Adventure has been a particularly useful thing to be involved in, as it offered the children an experience we can’t - it will ultimately enrich them.
* We concentrate on the process not the product and so there have been times when I’ve doubted the children had a sense of ownership on some of the work produced, particularly the DVDs. But when they saw the DVDs it was evident that they remembered and recognised their part in it – they got really excited and it made sense to them. It has made me pause and think about the emphasis we place on ‘process’.

Head, First Base

In March, staff from several schools gathered to share their experiences of TBA and to show DVDs of the work created with the artists.

Throughout the evening, reference was made to the growth in self-confidence, motivation and enhanced participation – and the fact that The Big Adventure opens doors both for and onto the children; the children get to enjoy and engage in their lessons and staff become aware of talents and skills that may have taken longer to discover had the children not been working in a creative environment. As one Head commented, ‘this is the only chance our children get to achieve.’

The Big Adventure was funded for one year by Activities Unlimited; that funding has now come to an end. We have been fortunate to secure financial support from several local councillors and some of the schools to continue the programme during the summer term 2011, allowing us time to develop and expand the project.

It is obvious that the schools value it – evidenced by the fact that they have chosen to mainstream the creative activities.

For more information ring Suffolk Artlink on 01986 873 955.