Forging your Development

The training and development opportunities that underpin Forging the Future and Forging Connections are framed within Forging your Development. This strand of programme is aimed to grow and develop professional practitioners working with children and young people in formal/informal education and creative sectors.

• Arts Award
• Forge Ahead
• Skills Share
• Forge Bank

Arts Award is a national qualification which supports young people to develop as artists and arts leaders. Young people aged between 11-25 can achieve Arts Awards at levels 1, 2 and 3 on the national qualifications framework. The Forge is one of the regional training agencies to deliver this. The Forge is a regional training license holder for Arts Award and an Arts Award Welcome centre.

We host public training sessions which are available to book via the Arts Award website. We are also interested in providing tailormade training for clusters of potential advisors eg A group of teachers or youth workers; please get in touch with Cheryl Gallagher if you would like to know about how to do this.

The Forge is one of the regional training license holders to deliver both public and in-house Arts Award training in the North East. We are also part of a pilot programme to deliver new courses.

PUBLIC COURSES

SILVER & BRONZE Award with The Forge at Stanley Education Centre. In order to book your place(s) on these courses click: BOOK A COURSE AT THE FORGE

Training dates
Available public Bronze and Silver advisor training dates:

• 24 February 2010, 09:30 - 17:00
  at The Forge, Stanley Education Centre (£135)

Downloads:

• Arts Award Information sheet
• Arts Award Welcome Information Sheet

NEW COURSES

The Forge is delivering a series of NEW COURSES on behalf of Arts Award, these are available both as public or ‘In house’ courses. Please see dates below available to BOOK HERE.

• Getting going with Arts Award
• Welcome training
• Refresher for advisers
• Arts award for managers

All courses are also available as in-house bookings.

Arts Award for managers training can be scheduled for a public event if there is demand from delegates, get in touch with

Downloads:

• Arts Award Information sheet

ARTS AWARD WELCOME

Arts Award Welcome is a badge scheme which enables organisations to define a unique offer to young people to support them in gaining their Arts Awards.

We are very much committed to the development of young people as artists and leaders for the future development of the arts. The Forge supports the Arts Award and can help young people to achieve aspects of their award by undertaking the many roles within an arts journey, these include performers, producers, researchers, promoters, backstage / front of house, technicians, event managers, audience members, volunteers, arts leaders and so forth.

As an Arts Award Welcome centre The Forge can support young people to achieve their Arts Award through our activities, events or access to professionals.

We offer young people expertise, information, opportunities and resources related to following aspects of the Arts Award:

Arts Award Welcome offer

Taking part The Forge can provide valuable information, advice and guidance including - how and where a young person can ‘take part’ via our network of cultural organisations and partners... finding an artist/choosing the appropriate art form(s) and working with arts and cultural partners in the North East region. (Other galleries/theatres/film and media companies/arts centres) Access one of our programme to participate: Connections Schools Membership scheme (Durham and Sunderland schools only) Youth Dance England school dance companies across Durham Sunderland Youth Dance England projects One-off creative programmes (various throughout the year)	Enjoying and appreciating We can help arrange behind the scenes/meet the artist/artist talks with our creative and cultural partners. Our Newsletter regularly features our partners work and ‘focused’ features with artists to share and learn about their work. Young people can feature their own work in our newsletter and review work within it Exhibitions/performances will be promoted via our website News and e-bulletins. Promotional packs are available for our activity, these can be used for young people to incorporate within their portfolios.
Leadership/apprenticeships & Volunteering or work placement The Forge offers leadership opportunities for young people through: Work placements: Placement can be offered if requested, these will be linked to the development of the young person ( including event management, shadowing artists linked to our existing programme offer) We can host volunteers within the organisation in a range of roles/range of projects (by request.) These can link into other developments such as 14-19 Creative and Media Diplomas. These would specifically benefit 16+. The company would limit these dependent on capacity and nature of work available at any given time. Marketing and Communications: Young people can contribute to our website and newsletter and lead special editions by request. Other support to fulfil leadership challenges can be accessed via our website which includes resources such as contract templates/fact sheets/funding. The Forge can offer meeting room space (with Mac hot desks) for young people’s leadership and apprenticeship activities where supervised by their adviser or other appropriate adult. Programme: Young people can act as leaders through directing their programmes facilitated by their Lead Artist. Working in partnership with cultural venues, schools and youth settings to enable curatorial, exhibition and performance opportunities.	Meeting arts professionals In all our projects young people gain access to an artist and/or project manager e.g. young people to interview/talking/shadow arts professionals (including staff within the Forge team/arts partners through our local authority venue links). Showcasing young people’s work We share all of our creative programmes, please review the relevant part of the website for opportunities and our partners websites www.youthdancenortheast.co.uk The Forge has a strong network of arts contacts and can utilise these to help young people access our arts and education partners to help negotiate space to showcase young people’s work. As part of our remit as Training License Holder for Durham and Sunderland we raise the profile of young people achieving their Arts Award and are able to assist in co-ordination of shared moderations. Meeting room space is also available for smaller scale sharing or showcasing events. Our website, sister sites (in development) and publicity materials (newsletters) are available to showcase young people’s work.

Forge Ahead is a dedicated programme of Continuing Professional Development for teachers and artists working within creativity and education. We draw on previous good practice to develop ongoing CPD opportunities, generally in partnership with other training providers, both arts and non arts. We work closely with our Local Authority partners to ensure a joined up, add valued offer exists. The next phase of The Forge’s CPD offer programme is in the planning and development stage.

Skills Share is in early stages of its development. It aims to provide a range of ways for practitioners within participatory arts settings to develop their skills through sharing, whether this be mentoring, shadowing or peer to peer sharing schemes.

Forge Bank is a dedicated virtual resource to ‘house’ the wide range of resources developed throughout The Forge’s programmes past and present. Forge Bank resources will support both formal professional development programmes as well as self directed learning.

Downloads:

• Contract template for artists

Keep checking here for new updates.

We would love to hear from you to shape Forging your Development effectively. Get in touch with