At the back end of last year, 20-21 were approached to deliver a session to a group of primary school children, as part of a project, looking at introducing children to new places and for them to meet new people and try out exciting new activities developed especially for them. This pilot project became known as Project Willows; a name decided by the group of children on their first day. Education at 20-21 quickly became the project management for the pilot, taking it in a creative and fun direction.
Project Willows was a 12 week programme which started and ended with the childrens' interests at its core. Creative sessions were developed around the theme of gaming and the arts. Children designed characters, costumes, missions and computer games, as well as attending places like Doncaster Race Course and local colleges.
There were lots of partners involved to ensure a quality diverse offer. On 10th July 2013, Project Willows sadly came to an end and went out with a bang with a big event and exhibition held at 20-21.
Below are some pictures of the sorts of things we got up to at that event!
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| Chloe showed Mr Garbutt around the exhibition, reminding him of all the creative printing techniques they used to make their bright and colourful bags and artworks. |
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| Pupils explained to adults and parents the sorts of activities they got up to during their time on Project Willows. The children made clay sculptures to depict their future aspirations. |
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| Chloe and Reece with their mums, pointing out all the pictures of themselves doing various workshops. |
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| Harry and Owen showed Mr Tinsley around their exhibition. Mr Tinsley came up with the idea for Project Willows and supported each and every decision made, guaranteeing quality in our offer. |
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| Owen telling adults about the fun we had making clay sculptures.. |
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| The boys performed their drama piece that was created with Duckegg Theatre Group. |
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| Mr Garbutt being shown the childrens' clay sculptures. The pupils talked through what sort of jobs they want when they grow up. |
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| Cats - represent one of the pupils wanting to be a vet. |
Once everyone had had a bite to eat and seen their glorious exhibition, parents, pupils and adults were taken through to the gallery to watch a short documentary of the children's views of Project Willows. The pcompleted an activity, to decorate a DVD cover so they could take their copy of the documentary home with them.
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| Everyone was so busy, they didn't realise a famous football manager had arrived! |
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| Brian Laws is the football manager for Scunthorpe United Football Club. He came along to congratulate us all and present the children with their certificates and medals of achievement. |
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| Once the event was over, the children filled their screen printed bags with the clay sculptures, pictures and memories of their time of Project Willows. |
Everyone has agreed that Project Willows was a massive success! Education at 20-21 feel honoured and priviledged to have had played a big role in such an exciting pilot project. We look forward tro running bigger and better long-term schemes for schools who are interested in upskilling pupils and introducing them to new experiences.
For more information on what took part during Project Willows, or for how to get invovled in future long-term projects, please don't hesitate to contact our Education Ofiicer, Hayley McPhun on 01724 297070 or education.2021@northlincs.gov.uk