“I wish this carried on after the holidays!”

“I really love coming to art club, it’s so relaxing”

During the second year of the CashBack Project, the Avenue team worked together with Northfield Academy in delivering 12-weeks’ worth of creative activities for P7 transitioning to S1. In preparation for transitioning after the summer, the group of young people put forward by Northfield’s associated schools, engaged in the sessions aimed to enhance their confidence in the new environment and making them feel more comfortable with the change of school.  

There were 5 sessions before summer, during which they were introduced to the new space by ‘taking a line for a walk’ and map making, which was printed in a risograph style over summer. As well as this they made stamps to personalise their items, aiming to feel more confident and empowered. The goal before the summer was to familiarise the young people with the school building, what support is there and building friendships with their peers, increasing the comfort and confidence in moving from primary to secondary school. 

After summer, the remaining 7 sessions were used to focus on exploring emotions surrounding the change and provide tools for expressing feelings that arose. Creative outlets that were explored were abstract painting and seeing how particular emotions can be expressed through something as simple as a line. The young people were also introduced to ceramics, and each made a ceramic bowl, that they filled with positive affirmations, which were written on marbled paper made during previous weeks.  

By participating in the activities, the young people were further supported through the process of moving and empowered with tools to explore emotions that may arise.